Dhampir: A Twilight Story
by Xo Bella Italiana oX
Summary: Lilly McLean never understood why she was so different until she & her adoptive parents moved to Forks, Washington & finds a friend in Bella Swan. They meet a strange golden-eyed family where she finds her mate in Jasper Whitlock. With their help, she will learn what it means to be a Dhampir & become initiated into the Supernatural. A Twilight Story Book 1 Jasper/OC Bella/Edward
1. Prologue

****Disclaimer. ********All publicly recognizable characters, settings etc., are the property of their respective owners. The original character s, ideas and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended. I only do this for fun.****

****Dhampir****

****A/N********: If you have any questions or comments, post them in my reviews and I will answer them in my next Author's Note at the bottom of the chapter! Enjoy! - Bella'Xo****

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><p><strong><span><strong>Prologue<br>********(Lilly's POV)****

My name is Lilly and I have a secret. A secret so secret that I don't even know what it is to be honest and a secret that I would never believe if it wasn't happening to me. There's something wrong with me. Its almost like I'm in a comic book full of super hero's with magical powers. Only I'm not the hero, or even the sidekick for that matter. I'm the bad guy.

Let me start from the beginning. I was born somewhere in a cabin in Alaska and unlike any other 18 year old, I remember everything. Every day, every hour, every minute since I was fully developed in my mother's womb. I remember killing my own mother.

You see, unlike other newborn children, I was born with a mouth full of teeth that I never lost. They are sharp and pearly white. Always have been. As if on instinct, I chewed my way put of my Mother's stomach and not long after I was out and in her arms...she died. That's not even what gets me though. Regardless of what I did to her, she still loved me. She told me so. Right before she died.

There was no one there but the two of us, so no one was around to help her. 4 days later, on a rare sunny day, I was found by a man. I knew he was different as well but not the same different as me. I remember he sparkled in the sun and had gold eyes. He took me from my dead mother's arms and torched the cabin with my mother inside, but not before taking a few mementos for me.

A gold locket with my mother's picture inside with an Italian inscription engraved. Con tutto il cuore... (with my whole heart...) She said it has been passed down from mother to daughter on the day of their births for decades. It is my most prized possession.

He also grabbed my mother's diary with all her thoughts, and favorite poetry and quotes from books, movies and some she wrote herself. Lastly, he took a small, old jewelry box. Inside held a sapphire ring, a gold chain, a gold charm bracelet, and a photo of my mother and a beautiful man that I can only assume to be my father. He is pale, with dark hair like mine and from what I can see, black eyes. I have my mother's green eyes.

Getting back to my story, he lit the house on fire and took me to an orphanage in Canada where I was adopted 4 years later by my current parents, Anna and John McLean.

I grew up like any ordinary child, but with an extraordinary intelligence. Anna and John didn't want to put me in any special schools because they wanted me to be with kids my age and grow up like all the other kids. That was all fine and dandy up until I hit puberty. That is when my senses heightened along with speed and strength appeared along with the craving for blood. I can hear a whispered conversation from far across the parking lot and smell everything around me. I can see perfectly in the dark as if it were light out, along with every dust particle around me. I run faster than any car or plane and can pick up a car with little to no problem.

As for the blood, it started with me liking to eat bloody steaks and escalated from there. I began sneaking into hospitals and stealing blood, but then things began to become too noticeable after awhile. I tried to just stop, but the cravings and burn in my throat began getting worse and I was having trouble being around my friends and family. So I began sneaking out at night once a week after my parents fell asleep to the dirtier parts of town and killing criminals for their blood. It was the best idea I could come up with, and the way I see it, I am saving more lives than I am taking.

I kept everything hidden from my friends and family up until one night, my parents caught me coming in one night from my hunt. I knew I couldn't tell them the truth. They would be afraid of me and send me away, or God knows what. So I told them that I snuck out to meet a friend and on my way home I was attacked and killed him. I begged them not to call the police or an ambulance. Another thing that developed was that my skin and bones became nearly impenetrable and is always iced cold, but in Canada, excuses aren't hard to come up with, but If a doctor checked me over or they tried to hospitalize me, a needle would never go through my skin and they would discover that there was something different about me.

I ended up convincing my parents not to call anybody, but the cost was that we would be moving. John is a lawyer for the prosecutor's office so a new job wasn't hard for him to find. He wanted our family to lay low, so he found a job in a small town in Washington called Forks. So after saying farewells to all of my life long friends, we began our drive to our new home.

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><p><strong><span>AN: So what do you guys think so far? If you have any questions I will be more than happy to answer them for you in the author's note at the bottom of the next chapter. Hope you enjoy!**

****If you have any questions or comments, post them in my reviews and I will answer them in my next Author's Note!****

****To see more, go to my FF page: Xo Bella Italiana oX****

****If you enjoyed this story so far, check out some of my other stories on my FanFiction page! Also, I am still accepting Twilight stories that involve Jasper/any female leads or Bella/selected male leads if anyone is looking for a Beta Reader. I will make exceptions on the characters depending on the plot. I am also now accepting Phantom of the Opera FanFictions that include Erik! I will also be accepting Bones featuring Agent Seeley Booth, Dawson's Creek, Titanic FanFictions featuring Jack, Snow White and the Huntsman featuring Snow White or Eric (the huntsman), The Ghost Whisperer that feature Melinda and Law and Order SVU that feature Elliot. I will accept OC characters as well depending on the other lead character. PM me for details!******  
><strong>_**- Bella'Xo  
><strong>_****Xo Bella Italiana oX****


	2. Chapter 1

Disclaimer. All publicly recognizable characters, settings etc, are the property of their respective owners. The original characters, ideas and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.I only do this for fun. - B

Chapter 1

(Lilly's POV)

I stood in my new room day dreaming while I unpacked my boxes. Anne knocked on the door before stepping inside as I turned around to face her, careful not to let her know that I knew she was there before she made her presence known.

"How do you like it so far?" She asked.

I frowned and nodded my head as I answered. "It's nice. Very wet." I answered pretending to be disappointed. Honestly with how many rainy and cloudy days a year, this place couldn't be more perfect for me. It was a small town with lots of forest for me to run and not a lot of people to risk being discovered. My skin doesn't sparkle like the man who found me, but I do almost glow. I would definitely look different in direct sun light compared to the rest of the people.

Back in Vancouver, I would skip school or stay inside so no one could see. Not the easiest thing to do, but luckily with how smart I am, I was easily able to keep up with my class.

"So school starts tomorrow." Anne said, trying to make conversation.

"Yup." I said. She was obviously trying to get at something and I was trying to get her to quit dancing around it and just come out and say it.

"I got you a ride with our neighbor." Ah. Here it is. "It's her first day too and I was talking to her Dad accross the street and he offered. He's the chief of police so he is going to be working with your father alot."

"Oh? Well that's nice of them." I answered. Not that I really needed a ride. I could run there faster, but they don't, nor ever will know that.

"Yeah, it was. She will be over in the morning when it's time to leave." She said.

"OK." I replied. We stood there in an awkward silence for a couple of seconds that seemed to just drag on. "Well I'm just going to finish unpacking and go to bed. It's been a long day."

"Alright." Anne replied almost relieved. "I guess your Dad and I will see you when we get home from work tomorrow. By the time you get up, I'll be starting my first shift at the hospital and John will be at the office earlier than usual it being his first day and all. Normally, he would be on his way out the door when you wake up. So are you going to be alright?"

"Yeah. I'll be fine thanks. Good night Anne." I smiled.

"Night sweetie." She answered, closing the door.

My relationship with my parents have been strained since they caught me sneaking in that night two months ago. But I'm alright with that. I don't fit in with them anymore and as much as it used to bother me, I'm OK with that now. I bairly see them as it is, what with John being a D.A. And always at the office or station to all hours of the night. Then there's Anne and her job at the hospital as a head nurse. I've learned how to take care of myself at a young age so the changes with my parents aren't so drastic to me.

I dont eat as much as I used to now that I drink blood. One meal every other day does the trick for me.

I bairly sleep anymore either. Three or four hours once a week is usually enough to keep me going.

I sat on my bed and looked at all the boxes littering my room. I guess it was time to unpack. I flicked my wrist and all the boxes opened. This was another change that came with puberty. I can control things with my mind. I am not sure what my limitations are because I haven't found them yet, nor have I been able to test my limitations with a person without them discovering what was going on.

I levitated everything from in the boxes and they began to fly around the room and land in their proper spots. I was finished within seconds with all the boxes crushed and stacked neatly in the corner by my chaise.

I decided tonight I should try to get some sleep considering the fact that I would be starting school at Forks High tomorrow. So I quickly changed into a pair of grey yoga pants and a yellow tank with matching slippers and crawled onto my bed and snapped my fingers, effectively turning off my lamp.

I was tying my Timberland boots when the door bell rang. Of couse I knew she was on her way over, so I was all set to go. I walked over to the door and opened it only to be hit in the face with her delicious scent. Strawberries and freecias. I could feel my green eyes darken a bit. I closed my eyes and centered myself as I learned to do and when I opened my eyes, I felt like I could manage again.

"Hi, um...I'm Bella Swan. Your Lillian?" She asked after assessing my appearence and held out her hand.

"Call me Lilly. It's nice to meet you." I replied and shook her hand. She flinched at the coldness of my skin, but didn't say anything about it as she took her hand from mine and we started towards her truck. It was definitely old and very large. There was rust here and there and the engine was very loud.

"This was very nice of you to offer me a ride." I thanked her.

"It's no problem." She answered as we got in, put our seatbelts on and started down the road. "So my Dad tells me that it's your first day today too?"

"Yeah." I nodded. "What grade are you in?"

"I'm a junior. What about you?" She asked looking hopeful. I noticed that she kept looking at me. Why? I'm not sure.

"Senior." I answered solemnly.

"Rats." Bella sighed. "It would b e nice to know at least someone."

"Well you never know." I added. "It's a small town. John said that when he registered me that the lady in office said that for some of the classes the combind the juniors and seniors."

"Yeah, hopefully we will have some classes together." Bella responded with a hopeful expression.

The rest of the ride was spent in silence untilwe pulled into the parking lot and into the spot. All the students who were outside were watching the truck with interest, obviously curious as to who was inside.

As predicted, we got out of the truck and the whispering started. Lucky for Bella though, she couldn't hear what was being said.

_"So they're the new kids?"_

_"The one with in the green shirt has to be the sexiest thing I have ever seen."_

_"Even hotter than Rosaile Hale!"_

_"I heard the one in the blue is Chief Swan's daughter Isabella. She used to live here but her Mom took her and left him."_

_"My mom said the girl in the green is Lillian and she's from Vancouver. She's a senior."_

_"I wonder if she's related to the Cullen's. She's p ale and looks likd a super model just like them."_

Just as I heard that, a silver Volvo and a huge black jeep pulled in across from us. Two girls and three guys got out of the cars just as the wind picked up and sent their scents straight at me. I froze and watched them. For some reason, their scents caught my attention and what's weird was that I couldn't smell their blood?

One with a penny colored hair suddenly whipped his gaze at me almost as if he heard that thought. He continued to study me with a confused expression on his face.

I didn't have time to ponder this, because right then bella got my attention.

"Ready to go to the office and get our schedules?" She asked, obviously trying to get away from the whispers and stares that were surrounding us. She was definitely the shy type like myself that didn't like all the attention. But for different reasons of course.

"Yeah, let's go." I answered and we began towards the office.

We continued into the building and down the hall as the stares continues. "I wonder if this is what a gold fish feels like."

Bella laughed and nodded as we finally reached our destination and walked inside.

A short middle aged chubby woman greeted us with a smile. Her red hair was curly and cut short and her green eyes were lit with excitement.

"You must be Lillian McLean and Isabella Swan. I'm Mrs. Cope. Welcome to Forks High!"

"It's Lilly and Bella. Thank you, it's nice to meet you." I replied correcting her. I knew if Bella was anything like me, that she would hate when someone calls her by her full name. I knew I was right when she gave me a greatful smile.

"Here are you schedules and a map of the school. All of the exits are highlighted and if you have any questions, someone would be more than happy to answer them for you. Lastly, have all of your teachers sign this slip and return it to me at the end of the day." She explained as she handed us all of our paperwork. We both thanked her and headed out the door.

"I have AP History first in room C212. What about you?" I asked.

"English in A413 with Mr. Birdie. What ese do you have?" she asked.

"Well after this, I have Spanish since I am already fluent in French, living in Vancouver and all. Then AP Chemestry, AP Mathematics, Lunch, study hall, then Phys. Ed. You?"

"Wow. All AP classes? I have also after this. Then Math, History, lunch, AP Biology and gym again with you." she replied, seeming satisfied with her schedule.

"Ok then. I guess I will see you next period!" I said waving as I left for my class.

(Jasper's POV)

School started like any other day, except today, the whole school was raving about the two new girls. Isabella Swan and Lillian McLean. All the lust that was being tossed around was enough to give me a perminant hard on for the rest of the day.

I am currently sitting in History as Mr. Griffen just finished taking attendence when the door opened and in walked in the most stunningly beautiful girl I had ever seen in my exsistence. She was almost...inhumanly beautiful.

She had pale skin just like mine, beautiful hazel eyes, long dark brown hair that fell in loose curls to the center of her back, and was about 5'6. I could swear she is a vampire. Her eyes and heartbeat are throwing me off.

"Miss Lillian McLean. Welcome to AP History! Why don't you tell us about yourself?" Mr. Griffen said as he signed her slip.

She faced the class with a small smile that made would have made my heart stop had it still beat. "Um, Hi. My name is Lillian McLean, but please...call me Lilly. I am 18 years old and I just moved here from Vancouver, Canada. Uhh...I enjoy reading and hiking and...I don't really know what else to say." She chuckled in a bell like voice. Again...another similarity between me and her.

"Thank you Miss McLean. Why don't you take a seat in the back next to Mr. Hale." Mr. Griffen gestured.

She smiled her thanks and made her way back to her seat. I could feel the jealousy and lust still in the air as she sat down. I had to find out if she was just an extremely beautiful human, or a vampire like me and my family with some extra human quirks to her. Only one way to find out. The final test until I can test her strength and speed somehow. So I turned and faced her.

"Hello, my name is Jasper Hale. Your Lilly?" I asked her. She turned to face me and her eyes widened. Mine did as well, because when our eyes finally met, the world around us seemed to freeze and everything fell into place. I knew that she is now my reason for exsisting and will hold my heart and life in her hands for as long as I live. I could almost see the cords connecting our souls as one. She was who I have been waiting over a century and a half for. And she knew it too. We were mates. She was mine and I was hers. Gravity no longer held me to the earth. It was her.

"H-Hi. Yeah, I'm Lilly. It's nice to meet you." She replied.

I stuck out my hand for her to shake and she looked at it skeptically before taking my hand. She didn't flinch or react towards my cold skin, for her skin was like mine. Which made her skin feel normal to me. But there was however an almost electric sensation flowing between our joined hands that we both seemed to notice and enjoy. But that did however answer my question to weather she was a vampire or human. It appeared that she was a vampire with a heart beat.

"It's nice to meet you as well." I replied and brought her hand to my lips and kissed her hand before reluctantly letting it go.

"We're the same." She mumbled to herself.

"Excuse me?" I asked her not understanding what she meant. Her emotions ratiated confusion so whatever she discovered between us confused her.

"Oh. Nothing." She spoke up and smiled before the teacher called the class to attention.

The lesson flew by and for the first time, I couldn't tell you what it was about. Even with my extra senses, all I could focus on was Lilly. I could tell she was having the same problem, but was being far less descrete than I was being.

I wasn't even aware that the bell had rang until she gathered her books and stood up.

"So what classes do you have?" I asked unwilling to just wait and see as the day goes on. She answered by handing me her schedule and waiting patiently for me to look it over. It appears that we have all the same classes except for Spanish and Phys. Ed. A smile came to my face and hers as well as I told her that. "May I walk you to you to your next lesson?" I asked gesturing towards the door to the hall.

She seemed to be deliberating before accepting but did so hesitantly. She was confused and nervas about something and I will have to speak to Edward to see if he can read her mind to find out what it is that she is feeling that way about.

"So why did you move to Forks if you don't mind me asking?" I asked her trying to make conversation as we walked out of the building and towards the forgein language building.

"Um...thats not something I really like talking about. Lets just say that my adoptive parents decided we needed to get out of Vancouver and this was the first place John was offered a job." She explained criptically.

I nodded my head accepting her answer for now and continued to make small talk until we got to her classroom.

"I guess I'll see you next period?" I said and she nodded shyly before thanking me for walking her and disappearing into the classroom. I could hear the gossip begin as Jessica introduced herself sitting next to Bella Swan. They all were shocked that a Cullen had already taken to speaking to one of the new girls.

I was broken out of my thoughts of Lilly as Alice skipped to my side. I immediately felt guilty, knowing she saw our entire interaction and my obvious intentions of making Lilly mine. We were never together and I never had those feelings for Alice, but I knew that she has been in love with me for decades.

"Can we skip this period?" Alice asked. "I promise to have you back for next period so you can see her again."

I figured I at least owed it to Alice to talk to her, so I agreed and we headed off into the woods. Once we were out of sight from the school, we took off at vampire speed through the forest and came to a stop in a small clearing. Alice skipped over to a log and sat down, patting the spot next to her. I complied with her wishes and we sat awkwardly for a few minutes, neither of us knowing quite where to start.

"She doesn't know what she is you know." Alice said out of the blue. I looked at her confused. How can she not know that she is a vampire? "I mean, she knows she is different from everyone else and even managed to keep it a secret from her adoptive parents. I don't know who or how she changed, or even how she has a heartbeat and green eyes. We will have to speak to her to get more information on her and her background, but I thought I would tell you all of this so you don't overwelm her with things she knows nothing about. So tread carefully with her and we will have to get her to come to our house so we can help her understand what she is and hear her story."

I was shocked with all this information, but accepted it none the less. I mean there are plenty of reasons as to how she doesn't know what she is. Maybe she was changed and her creator was killed or abandoned her before she woke up from the change. No one would have been there to explain what is going happened to her.

"Alice, I'm sorry-" I began to apologize.

"Don't." She stopped me. "I knew we weren't mates, but it didn't stop me from falling in love with you or trying to persue you. I thought that maybe if I won your heart, that you would be mine. I know you have never harbored those feelings for me, but I appreciate how you have always taken my feelings into consideration and how nice you have been about it. It just wasn't meant to be."

She smiled sadly and I smiled back and put my arm around her shoulder and pulled her close.

"I can't help that I never felt that way for you Alice. That I couldn't see you as anything more than a sister. But you have been wonderful and always will be my best friend. I don't want that part to change. Your mate will come one day. And he will return thoose feelings more than I ever could." I said trying to be compassionate.

"Thanks Jazzy. I appreciate hearing that." She said and put her arms around me in a hug which I gladly returned.

We stayed there taking and joking around until it was time to head back in for third period. I was anxious to see Lilly again.

When I entered the classroom, Isaw that she was already there. I wasn't suprised to find that she was seated next to me as my lab partner. After all, nobody was ever brave enough to willingly sit next to and work with me in class. It was very smart on their ends even if they don't know that they would be willingly putting their life at risk. I am after all the weakest link of the family. I am just thankful that as wonderful as Lilly smells, its more of an arousing smell that spikes my desire rather than my bloodlust. I couldn't ask for abetter lab partner.

"Well hello again sexy." A boy named Matt Reaper said trying and failing to be seductive as he leaned on Lilly's desk.

"Uhh...hi?" Lilly responded feeling uneasy and annoyed.

"So I was thinking,since your new in town and don't really know many people or your way around, that I could take you out for a night on the town Friday night?" He smirked.

At this point I was holding back from marching over there and ripping him a new one for trying to take what's mine.

"Mine." My beast agreed inside my head. The Major whole heartedly agreed and insisted going over there and letting Matt and the rest of the male population know she was ours. But remembering what Alice said, I didn't want to overwelm her as I was sure she was confused about why she was feeling the way she does about me already.

"That's a nice offer and everything, but I think I am going to have to pass. I'm sorry." Lilly said politely rejecting him.

I smiled at this and begn to make my way over to my seat.

"And why is that? We can just go as friends if that's what your worried about or-"

"She said she's not interested." I interrupted.

Matt reguarded me for a second before turning towards Lilly again.

"Well, if you change your mind...here's my number." He said dejectedly, handing her a small piece of paper with his number on it.

"Thanks. I will." She nodded at him.

I watched as Matt returned to his seat before turning back to face Lilly.

"Sorry, you looked like you needed some help there." I explained hoping she wasn't upset with me for butting in her conversation.

"Yeah, thanks for that." She smiled as a light blush colored her cheaks.

"It's no problem. I'm happy to help." I smirked.

"He's like that with all the girls, isn't he?" She asked.

"Yeah, but I can't blame a guy for going after someone as beautiful as you. You seemed to have captured a lot of male attention today." I complimented her.

"Is that so?" She laughed lightly and ducked her head embarassingly.

"Yeah. Without question." I answered, becoming hypnotized by her smile and lovely green eyes.

I was broken out of my trans by Mr. Banner calling the class to attention. I highly doubted that I would be able to pay much attention in this class either.

(Lilly's POV)

The bell finally rang dismissing class from Chemistry. I gathered my books together and tried not to beso obviously aware of Jasper as I really was.

I couldn't explain what was going on inside me. It's like the second we looked into each other's eyes for the first time, my whole world shifted where he was the center. My sun. My whole being was insisting that he was mine and I was his. I never believed in love at first sight, and I'm not even sure if I do now. But its definitely given me something to think about.

Also the faxt that he bears similar qualities to the man who found me as a baby in my mothers arns and brought me to the orphanage. He has the same golden eyes and the temperature of his skin matches mine. He obviously has great hearing like myself since he heard me mumble to myself earlier in History. He was also inhumanly beautiful as was he rest of his family.

"So, do you have any siblings or are you an only child?" Jasper asked as we walked down the hal ltowards English.

"No, it's just me. And suprisingly, I'm ok with that." I answered5544444 truthfully. "Speaking of siblings, you have two brothers and sisters?"

"Yeah. Alice, Edward, Emmett, and Rosaile." He answered. "They are all my adoptive siblings except for Rosaile who is my twin."

"Wow. Your parents are really nice to take you all in. I can't imagine its easy for them to have 5 teenagers running amuck." I commented.

"Ahhh we're not that bad." A big blurry guy came up on the other side of Jasper chuckled. "They love us no matter what we do. And thats saying something!"

Jasper laughed and patted him on the back.

"Lilly, this is my younger brother Emmett Cullen. Emmett, this is Lilly McLean. Emmett has English with us this period." Jasper introduced us as we turned to walk into the classroom.

"It's nice to meet you Emmett." I smiled at him, stopping to give Mr. Birdie my slip.

"Yeah you too! I'm sure I'll be seeing a lot of you in and out of school." He winked.

I blushed as Jasper shoved Emmett as he shoved him back as they made their way to the back of the room to their seats.

Thankfully, Mr. Birdie just signed my slip and handed it back to me and let me skip the whole intoduction infront of the class. There was a free seat infront of Jasper that was next to Emmett that I took.

"Edward was right Jazz man, she is fuckin hot!" Emmett said at a speed others shouldn't be able to hear.

I turned and looked at him in shock that he can speak like I can and not have others hear. The Cullens have to be like me. But then why do they all have gold eyes and I have green? Maybe I am mistaken.

Emmett looked back at me stunned at Jasper growled softly at him. Growled? Just like I do on instinct. I shook itoff for now and paid attention to what was happening presently.

"You can understand us?" Emmett asked with his eyebrows raised.

I nodded my head not sure what else to say, then regretted it. This would only open a can of worms I wasn't sure I wanted opened yet.

"How-" He began but was cut off my his phone vibrating. He read the text and didn't say anything more onthe subject.

Finally it was time for lunch. I still had 5 more days before I had to eat a meal, so I took a seat at the firat empty table I saw. Bella and that girl Jessica that was asking me about my friendship with Jasper waved me over to their table. I sighed and made my way to their table, preparing myself for the onslaught of questions that I was sure was to come about myself from the rest of the kids at the table.

"Hi Lilly!" Jessica exclaimed as I took a seat next to Bella.

"Uh, hey Jess." I said less extaticly.

"How are you liking school so far? You seem to be making friends quick." She said going straight into any gossip she can get. It was clear she wanted more information on Jasper and Emmett since she saw me enter the canteen with them.

"Um, yeah I guess." I answered vaguely. What buisness was it of hers?

"Hello! I'm Angela. And this is Ben, Eric, Tyler, Lauren and Mike. You must be Lilly?" A girl with glasses inturpted, saving me from Jessica's questioning. I gave her a greatful smile shook her hand.

"So your from Vancouver right?" Eric asked.

"Yeah, I am." I confirmed.

"Its their loss." Tyler sid, attempting to flirt and it was obvious Lauren wasn't having any of it.

"Do you think they will take you back? Pheonix van take Swan back too." She said in her nasil like voice.

"Don't listen to her. We are happy to have you both." Mike said giving Bella and I a look that I assumed was suposed to be sexy. "Very happy."

Bella and I looked at each other, then went back to our conversation politely ignoring Mike's attempts of flirting.

"Aren't you hungry?" Angela asked noticing that I didn't ahve any food infront of me.

"Big breakfast." I answered. I migt just have to start buying a small lunch everyday as to not have any more questioning. I can't use that excuse all the time.

I noticed Bella kept looking over at the Cullen's table and it seems I wasn't the only one who noticed.

"They're the Cullen's." Jessica explained, obviously happy that she gets to do a little gossipping. "The little brown haired girl, that's Alice Cullen, she's really weird. And the big curly haired guy, that's Emmett Cullen. He's dating the blonde haired girl that looks like a super model, Rosaile Hale. Then that blonde haired guy with the curly hair that looks like he's in pain. That's Rosaile's twin Jasper Hale. But you already know that, don't you Lilly?" As she said that, Jasper looked up from his lunch that he was picking at and smiled at me.

I smiled back before answering. "Yeah, he's really nice."

"Wait, Jasper talked to you?" Lauren asked.

"Uh, yeah. Why?" I asked confused.

"The Cullen's don't talk to anyone but their other siblings." Jessica explained.

"But if they're related, how are Emmett and Rosaile dating?" Bella asked.

"Oh, they're not really related. They are all adopted by Dr. and Mrs. Cullen." Angela clariffied.

"Yeah, but they live together. Its still weird." Jessica said.

"Who's he?" Bella asked as the Penny haired boy from this morning took his seat.

Jessica didn't even have to look over there to see who Bella was asking about. "Oh, that's Edwrd Cullen. Totally hot, but he doesn't date. None of the girls at this school seem to be good enough for him."

"Neither does Jasper." Lauren butted in.

I shook my head tunning out their conversation and sat wondering when it was that he turned her down.

"At least once a week since we moved here." I heard from accross the canteen from the Cullen's table.

I looked up in shock. Edward was looking back at me along with Jasper who was looking between Edward and myself.

_'Can you hear me?' _I asked him in my head.

He nodded his head and smiled.

I guess I'm not the only one who has an extra talent. Edward raised his eyebrows in question but I just shook my head tell him to forget it. Thankfully, he didn't have the time to press the matter because the bell rang dismissing us from lunch.

Unfortunately, Edward caught up with me quickly.

"Edward Cullen." He said introducing himself and holding out his hand to shake.

"Lilly McLean." I answered shaking his hand. He seemed to be as shocked as I was this morning with Jasper when he noticed I had he same temperature skin as him. I still don't understand all of this.

"So what did you mean when you though about not being the only one with an extra talent?" He asked getting right to the point.

"Nothing. I don't want to talk about this. Not now, not ever." I said forcefully. I really didnt want to know. At least not now and who knowsbif I ever will be ready.

I noticed Edward was still looking at me intently as we walked and I mentally slapped myself for fogwtting that he was a mind reader. "Please. Just leave it alone."

"Why?" He asked taken back.

"Just please. I don't want to get into this tpoic, and certainly not at school." I pleaded with him.

He nodded his acceptance and we parted ways. However I doubted that him or his family would leave it alone for long.

A/N: Thanks so much for the reviews! I am going to clear up the main question that seems to be coming up. If anyone has questions, feel free to post them on my reviews and I will answer them every chapter at the bottom in my Author's Notes.

Is this a Jasper/Bella fanfic?

The answer to this question is no. This story is going to be paired like so:

Jasper/Lilly Bella/Edward Alice/Will not bake an appearance until the sequel and yes there will be a sequel. Emmett/Rosaile Carlisle/Esme.

Also, feel free tocheck out some of my other stoeies as well!

The Major

Perplexing Revelations

Attempting to Covet

Pretexting

Far Fetched Realities

Enjoy!


	3. AUTHOR'S NOTE

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Sorry, this is not a chapter HOWEVER...I did just update Perplexing Revelations just not as I am posting this author's note, so don't mistake that update as only an Author's Note.

I am thinking of starting another story and I wanted to know what you guys thought about this. If you guys don't like it, I won't post it, but keep it as something to write for myself without posting. Let,me know!

Other Worldly Beauty

Summary...

Jasper is really a demon but nobody knows. Not just any demon but the devil's son. Jayden is a half demon half phoenix. Bella is still human and the rest of the Cullens and characters are who they were in Twilight.

Jayden cames to Forks High in Bella's senior year of high school at the high point of her depression from Edward and the Cullen's leaving. Since Bella seems to draw all things supernatural to her, she and Jayden immediately become best friends, hus bringing Bella out of her depression. Charlie gets married to Sue after Harry dies, resulting in Bella moving in with Jayden. (She lives alone) Peter and Charlotte are in the area and they happen upon Jayden while they are hunting one weekend in Seattle. They end up staying with them because Peter's gift is insisting upon it.

Jasper can feel that his mate is going to be appearing in the near future which results in him leaving Alice and the Cullen's in Alaska. He calls Peter and Char asking if he can stay with them since they are the only ones that know his true identity and a demon finding their mate is extremely rare because a demon can only mate with a demon. Peter's gift insists that he come and agrees and gives him the address. Jasper appears, finding his mate in Jayden and shocking Bella with his true identity. A demon. She and all the Cullens just thought that he was a vampire with golden in his green eyes. Jayden has bits of red in her hazel eyes because like vampires, demons drink blood and Jayden is a human drinker.

Danger approaches where they need the Cullen's help, bringing them back into the picture along with werewolves (true children of the moon), phoenix's, demons, vampires and the wolves. The journey is long and hard, but it is the only way they have a chance of survival.

So what do you guys think? Is it worth a story? PM me or leave your thoughts in my reviews...

Bella'xo


	4. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer.**** All publicly recognizable characters, settings etc, are the property of their respective owners. The original characters, ideas and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.I only do this for fun. -B**

**Chapter 2**

**(Jasper's POV)**

I kept what I learned to myself for the rest of the school day. Aside from Alice who kept quiet for the time being due to my pleas, my siblings were another story though. She was all they seemed to speak about. I could feel the jealousy from Rose as we stood by the car waiting for Edward who was no where to be seen.

As soon as Lilly who was walking with Isabella Swan passed by, all conversation stopped and looked her way. Both girls returned our stares, but Isabella was more curiosity with a tinge of fear that wasn't there before. I wondered what could have happened between now and lunch that warrented that fear.

My question was answered when Edward strode up to the car with purpose, radiating nothing but fear, panic and blood lust. The latter was really out of place for Edward and I knew it was brought on my Isabella's mouth watering sweet scent, rather than Lilly's beautiful, alluring one that produced no temptation from any of my family thus far. I heard Alice gasp before climbing into the car before me as Edward wasted no time on rushing those ridding with him into the car.

"Edward, you can't leave us. There must be another way! " Alice pleaded out of the blue during the quiet ride home.

What? He's leaving? Why?

"I have no choice Alice. If I stay, I'll just end up killing her like I almost did twice today." He argued back.

"What do you mean? Where are you going and what brought this on?" I asked anyone trying to get clued in.

"I'm thinking of spending some time up in Alaska. It's that new girl Bella. Her scent is like nothing I've ever smelled before." He admitted ashamed of his almost slip up.

_'Hey, there's nothing to be ashamed of. You have the best control out of all of us aside from Carlisle. This girl's got to be your singer. I'm shocked you left her alive as soon as you got a whiff of her scent, let alone survive an entire class with her without attacking. You know that the singer never survives their meeting with the vampire they sing to. Remember Emmett? How long was his alive for before he killed him?'_ I thought to him as I clapped him on his shoulder as we turned into the hidden road that is our driveway. _'I'm proud of you brother.'_

He sent me gratitude along with appreciation and smiled at me.

"At least wait until after the family meeting where you can tell Carlisle yourself. He's on his way home as we speak. Apparently Rose called him on their way home." Alice pleaded with our brother.

He nodded his head and turned off the car, before climbing out and racing into the forest. I looked at Alice in question for what he was doing.

"Hunting." She answered my unasked question. A moment of silence lapsed before she spoke. "I saw the whole thing you know. He was planning on killing the class to get to drink her in peace, to luring her away, to going to her house. Good thing he was so indicisive because the school bell snapped him out of it before he booked it out of that classroom. Then before we left school, he had a run in with her again in the office trying to get his schedule changed. He wanted to kill Miss Cope and take Bella then as well." Alice told me softly as to keep as much of the conversation to ourselves.

"What's going on?" Esme asked catching onto the tension from the four of us as we sat down at the dining room table waiting for Edward and Carlisle to appear.

"I think it's best if we wait until everyone is here rather than have yo explain everything over again." Alice answered nicely.

"What's to explain other than there are two new girls at school. One who seems to have the entire male and some of the female population at her feet, and has extra strong senses. And the other is nothing but a klutz who is too curious for her own good." Rose responded bitterly with a hint of jealousy and some...longing? That she seemed to be trying to cover up when she spoke of my Angel.

Esme looked on a little baffled but before she could say anything to that, the front door opened and in walked Carlisle with his arm around Edward's shoulder sending waves of sympathy and worry. It was silent as they both sat down at the large dining room table.

"It seems we have a lot to talk about." Carlisle said as he folded his hands properly on the table. "The first part of business I would like to address is this young lady who seems to have captured everyone's attention. I hope you don't mind Jasper, but I placed a call into your Mr. Jenks this morning when Emmett called this morning and had him dig up what he could about her. I assured him that you wouldn't be upset that he do this for us. Am I correct on this assumption?" He asked nervasly, knowing that Jenks was my contact who created any and all documents I needed, getting any information I required or if I needed a lawyer for whatever reason. His family has been doing this for decades for me and knew not to ask questions. Especially about my never aging and any other oddities he may have noticed. I learned over the years that instilling fear is the best way to get what you want when it comes to people like Jason Jenks.

"You are correct in your assumption Carlisle, however don't make going behind my back, with my contacts or for whatever reason a habit." I told him with the Major slipping through a bit. We had the same views when respect or this kind of situation came into play. Even more so when it had to do with our mate.

"Of course Jasper. I apologize and it will not happen again, son." He said sincerely.

"Tell us what you found darling." Esme coaxed, putting her hand on his forearm. She was obviously as anxious as the rest of us to discover the mystery that is Lillian McLean.

"Of course dear." Carlisle smiled at his wife lovingly. I couldn't help but to be envious of them. Having their mate here in their arms. "Lillian Rose McLean is 18 years old from Vancouver, Canada. She was adopted by Anna Michelle McLean and Johnathan Dale McLean at Bishop Shannahan Orphanage when she was 4. She was dropped off there by an anonymous male with some personal items.

"She was always an amazingly beautiful and girl it seems and had the nuns at the orphanage wrapped around her little finger. She was very smart and intelligent and had many couples and single parents pressing to adopt. Rumor has it, that the staff loved her so much, that they would constantly turn these people down, wanting to keep her for themselves, until John and Anna came along.

"The staff tried to deny their application to adopt Lilly even though they were the perfect applicants. John is a district attorney so he got all the paperwork put together and filled out himself, and had amazing references from Judges and Doctors that his wife worked with, so he knew they had no reason to turn him down and threatened to take them to court.

"They still fought tooth and nail with John himself at court, but in the end, the Judge couldn't find a reason not to award them Lilly's guardianship and forced the staff at Bishop Shannahan to push the odoption through." He explained, looking all of us in the eye as he began to pass photos around of the most beautiful little girl any of us have ever seen.

All the girls looked at the pictures whistfully and protectiveness began to arise not only in their emotions, but in their eyes. The men had the same fierce protectiveness along with adoration.

Carlisle studied our reactions with interest and he acted almost confused about this information. Edward was looking at him with his eyebrows raised as he listened to. Carlisle's thoughts.

"Something to share with the class?" Emmett questioned feeling left out.

"I was just thinking how much Lilly reminds me of an immortal child growing up. The Immortal Children were beautiful children who captivated all who laid eyes on them. Reguardless of their blood thirsty nature and how dangerous they were, armies would come together to protect them from anything and fought with the Volturi who at that point made them illegal creations.

"The children had no self control and would destroy towns before they were satisfied. Even their victims couldn't find it in them to harm these children. Now, aside from the bloodlust and violence, I was surprised to find how many similarities there were between Lilly and the Immortal Children." He explained scratching his chin in a very human gesture.

Everyone around the table nodded in confusion and a moment of silence passed its way around the table.

"What else did Jenks find?" I asked egar to learn as much as I could about my mate.

"Growing up, Lilly continued to be extremely bright, outshinning her classmates when it came to anything and everything. Her parents got offers from many prestigious schools egar to have her, but her parents turned them down, knowing that Lilly was happy at the school she was attending and with all of her friends.

"About a month ago, John put his notice into his firm and Anna gave her two weeks. They didn't give a reason other than wanting a change of scenery. John took the first job he was offered here in Forks as a District Attorney and will also be working with Seattle's office as well. Her mother Anna is a head nurse at the hospital I am working at and I have already met her today. Other than this information along with newspaper clippings about all of Lilly's achievements, a CD of her singing, pictures and report cards, that is all he was able to aquire." He finished as he passed around her school photos, report cards and the articles.

Some were about her musical tallents with singing and some compositions she wrote on the paino. One was about winning a Scholastic Decathlon. A couple were on charities she participated in. Overall, she was an amazing girl.

Carlisle walked over to the stereo in the corner of the room and inserted her CD and pressed play. Music filled the speakers and shortly after the voice of an Angel began to stream from the speakers. The songs were rock with a classical edge to them and you could tell that even Edward was thoroughly enjoying them.

"It says here that all of the instruments featured in her songs were played by her. Aparently, she is a musical genus." Esme said while skimming over the back of her CD.

"She is really good. I really like this CD." Rose said, shocking everyone with her compliment.

"I agree. The classical music she adds to it is quite brilliant." Edward praised. "If you don't mind, when we are finished here I would like to burn this for my collection Carlisle."

"Yeah, me too." Emmett added.

I felt pride well up in my emotions hearing all the praises of my Mate's CD from my family.

"Do you mind if I actually keep it Carlisle?" I asked him wanting to keep the origional CD rather than a burned copy.

"Of course son." He nodded. After the current song finished, Carlisle stopped the CD and popped it out of the player, putting it in it's case and handing it to me. "Just make sure to burn a copy for whoever wants one."

I nodded my head in understanding as he sat down at the head of the table.

"Now that we know alittle bit about her, is there anything anyone wants to add? I know Emmett called because he had some concerns about her and with that said, I am sure the rest of you do as well." He said.

"What was your concern Emmett?" I asked alarmed.

"Well, in English, do you remember me talking at vampire speed with you?" I nodded my head in understanding, recalling when he made a comment on Lilly's appearance and I growled at him in warning. "Well she heard me and looked back at me stunned. I asked her if she could understand me, again at vampire speed and she nodded her head yes. I was about to ask her 'How is it possible,' because though she has vampire traits, she also has some human as well, but Alice sent me a text telling me not to, so I just let it drop."

Everyone aside from Alice and myself looked stunned at hearing this information.

"Was there a reason why you didn't want him to ask her Alice?" Carlisle asked, as we all turned our attention towards her.

"Because she doesn't know what she is." Alice answered.

"What do you mean she doesn't know what she is? What is she?" Rose asked her.

"I don't know what she is exactly, nor do I know how she was changed, but I have seen visions of her in the future and she has all of our vampire abilities, so I know she is a vampire. But it seems that she is still part human as well." Alice disclosed.

"Yeah, I've seen her blush a couple times today." I added.

"Was there anything in her thoughts today Edward?" Carlisle asked, completely enthralled with the prospect of something new and unknown for him to learn about. To be honest, as much as I wanted to learn more about Lilly, this all kind of bothered me. She was a person, not an experiment for him to poke and prode at. I wanted to learn about her from her. Not researched or from an outside contact.

"Well, I only got to listen to her during lunch as I don't have any classes with her, but I know that she definately has some sort of power." Edward retorted.

"What makes you say that?" He inquired.

"The other new girl Bella Swan and her are friends and were sitting together while Bella was getting the 411 about all of us and she mentioned something about me not dating because none of the girls at the school were good enough for me. Lauren Mallory pipped in saying that Jasper doesn't either, while giving Lilly a pointed look so she started thinking to herself about how many times Jasper must have turned her down for her to say that. I spoke outloud to myself saying that she has been turned down once a week since we moved here.

"By this time, I had already heard what happened in English through Emmett's thoughts so I wasn't suprised when she looked over at me and questioned if I could hear her thoughts. I wasn't aware that she didn't know about vampires or what she was so I told her yeah I could. It was then I heard her think to herself that she wasn't the only one with an extra tallent. The lunch bell rang before I could say anything, but I did catch up with her quickly in the hall asking what she meant by that. She told me she didn't want to talk about it and wasn't sure if she ever would. I think our family has thrown her for a loop and has her questioning herself now." Edward interpreted.

"Do you have any idea what it could be?" Carlisle asked, turning his attention towards Alice who was scanning the future with the far-away look she had in her eyes.

"Not as of yet." She blinked coming back to the present. "But as soon as she decides to use her power or gift and it shows up in my visions, I will let you know."

"Does anyone else have anything else to add concerning Lilly before we move on to our next topic?" Carlisle questioned the table as a whole.

"She's Jasper's mate." Alice pointed out with a smile.

All eyes turned to me for clarification to which I just nodded with a small smile displayed on my face.

"That's so great honey! Congratulations! I'm so happy for you!" Esme beamed, coming around the table to envelope me in her arms.

"Thankyou." I said ducking my head with a small smile, embarassed of all the attention. I never liked being in the spot light. Even with Maria when I wasn't in Major mode, I just did what I had to do. For the most part, I stay to myself and observe the people around me and step up to the plate when the time calls for it.

"I'm happy for you son. She is a real beaut and a tallented one at that. I think she will be perfect for you." Carlisle praised me from his seat. I nodded my head in thanks to him in return and took my seat.

"My man! Your lucky you've got sexy ass mate! Welcome to the mate club!" He leaned accross the table and I pumped his fist.

"I'm real happy for you brother." Edward said with a small smile, but I could feel the tinge of jealousy in his emotions. I smiled back at him and nodded my thanks to him as well.

"You deserve to be happy after all these years. I'm happy you finally found a mate." Rose said to me and I knew she meant it from her emotions. Playing twins for as long as we have, we have grown close so it meant alot to me that she would say that.

"You should bring her over to the house. I would love to meet her." Esme said estatically. I could tell she was looking forward to having another daughter to spoil.

"Well, the first time I bring her over here is probibally going to be helping her learn what she is since she clearly isn't aware she is a vampire." I told her.

"Oh of course. I would like to speak with her as soon as you are able to bring her over. I would like to find out what makes her so human compared to others of our species." Carlisle interjected.

"Just make sure you treat her like a person, and not an experiment or research subject." I narrowed my eyes ar him knowing how he can get and wanting to make sure he knows off the bat that we do this at her pace.

"Of course son. I apologize. I just haven't seen or heard of anything like her before and I seem to be getting ahead of myself." He said bashfully. He then composed himself and got back to business. "Now for our second topic for discussion. Isabella Swan."

"She prefers Bella." Alice added.

"Bella." Carlisle corrected himself. "It has been brought to my attention that not only can Edward not seem to read her mind, but that she is Edwards singer as well, and there was almost an inncident in Edward's biology class."

"What?" Rose exclaimed sitting up in her seat.

"Calm down Rose, honey." Esme tried to sooth her. "Nothing happened, and we are going to do everything in our power to ensure that it doesn't."

"But what if it does in the future? I don't want to move again! I'm finally a senior and not to mention, Jasper just found his mate." She argued.

"There's not going to be a slip up because I am going to Alaska." Edward inturupted.

"What? For how long?" Esme gasped as venom began to tear in her eyes. She didn't want to see any of her children leave home and her maternal nature was becoming emotion at the idea.

"I'm not sure. But it's the only thing I can think of where I won't end up killing her in the end. I've already tried to switch out of that class, but Miss Cope was insisting that there are no other classes available for that period. To make matters worse. It turns out she is my lab partner. I have no choice." Edward explained forcefully.

"No! You shouldn't have to leave! It's not fair that our family has to be split up because of some human!" Rose ranted as Emmett tried to sooth her.

"Well if you have a different idea Rose, I'm sure we would all love to hear it and take it into consideration." Carlisle said looking at her pointedly, waiting for an answer.

She didn't say anything for a few moments when suddenly, Edward growled and Alice shreaked. "No Rose! You can't! She is going to become very important to Edward and my best friend!"

"What? Will someone fill the rest of us in?" Emmett looked back and forth between his mate, Edward and Alice.

"She is thinking of going and killing Bella!" Alice accused.

"Rose!" Esme gasped horrified as the rest of us looked on astonished.

"That's not going to happen Rose. Bella Swan is an innocent human being that did not do anything to directly provoke this family, nor is she a threat. You are going to leave her alone." Carlisle argued sternly.

"Oh come on! If Edward slips, it could end up exposing us all! Not to mention she is breaking up our family!" Rose slammed her palm on the table, nearly cracking the marble. She then looked in my direction. "Jasper, what do you think? You have an opinion in this as well. It's your mate at risk as well if the Volturi end up coming here because of her!"

I thought about it for a moment before I answered. "You do have a point. If the Volturi come and find out about Lilly, they are obviously going to be looking into her and that could very well be a bad thing. I just found my mate, I will not loose her."

"See! He agrees with me!" She pointed in my direction.

"Neither of you are to touch her! I made my decision and I am leaving for Alaska tonight!" Edward growled.

"While I can understand you reasoning Jasper and Rose, my decision still stands. Bella Swan will be left alone and that's the end of it. She is an innocent human being, and if Edward going to Alaska for awhile is the answer to this riddle, then so be it." Carlisle said laying down the goblet.

"He won't be gone long. He will be coming back. I just don't know when." Alice chirped, happy that this has all been solved but sad to see that her brother would have to leave for an amount of time.

"Then it's settled." Carlisle stated, effectively dismissing us from the table.

(Lilly's POV)

Bella and I were sitting on her bed doing homework in silence. Something was obviously wrong with her, and I was worried about what it could be.

"Hey." I said getting her attention from her math homework. "Are you ok? You've been really quiet ever since you came from dropping your slip off with Miss. Cope. Did something happen?" I asked concerned.

She thought a minute before answering. "You know the Cullen's?" I nodded. How could I forget. "Well, after lunch I went into my biology class and had Edward as a lab partner. The whole class he kept giving me this evil look. I hadn't even said a word to the guy and he just kept staring at me like he was getting ready to rip my throat out. Then, when I went into the office, he was in there trying to get out of our bio class. I don't know what I did wrong." She finished looking a mix between mad and hurt.

"I'm sure you didn't do anything wrong. I mean, you heard what the others said at lunch today. They're weird." I told her, trying to make her feel better, even if I didn't think there was anything weird about them compared to myself. I knew I wasn't much better. "Don't let it get to you. I'm sure he will apologize when he comes back in tomorrow."

"Yeah, I guess your right." She said with a small greatful smile.

I smiled back and took a deep breath, which I immediately regretted. It was time for me to hunt and Bella smelled extremely sweet.

"Hey, it's getting late and I need to go eat." I said collecting my things. I needed to get out of there before I ended up taking a snap at her. That thought just brought our previous conversation to the forefront of my mind and I realized how similar what I was thinking was to what happened with her and Edward in biology. Whatever we were, I guess I wasn't the only one who thought her blood smelled sweet. But I was at least able to compose myself in a positive manner.

"Are you sure you don't want to wait until dinner's ready and eat with Charlie and I?" She asked.

"Uh, yeah. I should be home when Anna and John get home. But thanks anyway. Maybe another night." I answered as we made our way down the stairs and towards the front door.

"Ok, I'll see you in the morning for school." She smiled.

"See you then." I winked and made my way accross the street and into my house.

It was around 11:45pm and finally safe for me to sneak out of the house and head up towards Seattle. I made sure my door was locked as per usual when I slept. I started doing that every night so my parents wouldn't get suspicious when I snuck out, they wouldn't notice a difference.

I dressed in jeans and a dark sweat shirt and opened my window, jumping into the tree just outside before turning around and closing it most of the way before jumping down and landing gracefully on the balls of my feet.

I raced through the trees towards Seattle, relishing the fact that I can do this without worrying about being spotted since this area was so dense with trees and bairly any people or cars on the road.

After about fifteen-twenty minutes later, I made it to a bad part of town and began looking for my prey for the week. I came accross many possibilities, but it wasn't until I heard a girl scream and a struggle before I knew I found the perfect subject.

I raced towards the direction I heard it coming from and shortly came upon a man holding a knife to a woman's neck in an alley way. You could tell she was scared out of her wits of what was to come and as soon as he began to unbuckle his belt, I knew what his intentions were.

I appeared behind him and wretched him away from the woman, grabbing the knife from his hand and pinning him to the wall with it in one fluid motion. I didn't really need to hold the knife to his neck, but that was just for show until I could get the woman to leave me alone with the scum bag. The man reaked of booze and cigarettes and was in shock at what just transpired.

I turned my attention to the petrified woman who was currently on the ground against the wall, looking on with wide eyes.

"If you know what's good for you, you'll go home and be more careful traveling on foot at this time of night." I told her, nodding towards the exit of the alley. She nodded profusely and gathered her things with a quick thank you and ran out of the alley.

I turned my attention to the pervert in my grip and tucked the knife in my pants, behind my back. I would get rid of it later.

Once he noticed the the knife was no longer at his throat, he tried to struggle out of my grip but to no avail.

"Wh-What are you?" He stuttered. His fear rose so high at this point and it only made his scent more enticing.

"Nothing you will need to know considering your not living beyond this moment." I whispered and snapped his neck before he could scream. I then latched my mouth to his jugular and began to suck the delicious red liquid down my throat.

Moments later, I was finished and proceeded to dump the body into the dumpster and light it up on fire, effectively burning the body and any evidence.

I was racing back towards Forks when I had the feeling that I was being followed. I stretched my senses out and could hear light footfalls in the close distance. I stopped in my tracks and took a deep breath in, attempting to identify who or what those sounds belonged to.

**A/N: ****Cliff hanger! So who do you think it is that she is about to come face to face with? I'm sorry I had to end it here and with such a short chapter compared to what I usually write, but in order for the chapter not to be like 20K with what happens next, this was the place that I had to end. Review and give me your thoughts! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter!**

**Questions and Answers:**

**brownbey - Is Bella and Edward going to be together or is it going to be Bella and Alice? **_It is going to be Bella and Edward, just like in the story. It is going to be very close related to Twilight when it comes to pairings. The only differences are Jasper and Alice are not together._

**Will this be a Jasper/OC? **_Yes it is! It's going to be Lilly and Jasper._

**I will be updating this story again very shortly. I have actually already begun to write the next chapter. - Bella'Xo**


	5. Beta Reader

**ATTENTION READER'S**

**I would like to point out to everyone here that is a writter on FanFiction  
>that I am now currently a Beta Reader and accepting<br>twilight stories to Beta. **

**I am on here at least once a day, so I have no problem being quick, but  
>efficent when returning you your beta'd stories.<strong>

**I look forward to hearing from any of you who are looking for a  
>new beta reader. <strong>

**Thank You,  
>Bella'Xo<strong>


	6. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer.**** All publicly recognizable characters, settings etc, are the property of their respective owners. The original characters, ideas and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended. I only do this for fun. -B**

**Chapter 3  
><strong>**(JPOV)**

It was about 11:15pm, and I was sitting in my study with a book in my lap. However, no matter how much I tried, I could not concentrate on the words on the page, but rather the background words that my beautiful mate sang. It was all I could do right now to feel somewhat close to her. Ever since I saw her today, I couldn't get my mind off of her. Hearing about all of her accomplishments and talent's had me in the state of awe over this girl. God couldn't have made a more perfect girl for me if he tried, and I was eternally grateful. No matter how many things I've done wrong in my long life, and believe me...the list _**isn't**_ a short one either.

Finally, I couldn't take it anymore. I had to see her. I got up out of my chair behind my desk and walked through the door that connected my large study to my slightly smaller bedroom with a connected bath, and went into my closet and changed into a navy blue t-shirt and light colored jeans. I slipped on a pair of timberland boots and made my way out of my room and down the two sets of stairs to the living room. I grabbed my white fall jacket and reached for my keys that rested on the coffee table and put them in my pocket.

"You're going to want to run. I see her leaving her house in less than five minutes to hunt." Alice told me.

"Speaking of which, what exactly is she hunting?" Carlisle asked as he looked up from the medical book he was reading while sitting next to Esme with his arm draped over her shoulder.

"Does it matter?" I interrupted with a growl before Alice could answer.

"Well...no, but I just wanted to make sure that if she was hunting humans that it wasn't going to affect you and your choices. Or tempt you in any way. We all know that you have a harder time with this diet than the rest of us." Carlisle tried to explain gently as to not insult me.

"If you want to catch her before she leaves, you might want to hurry." Alice added before I could argue with what Carlisle said. "I will answer your question, Carlisle, by warning Jasper to stay down wind of her when she gets to Seattle."

Humans. She's a human drinker.

"She's a human drinker?" Rose shrieked as she came in from the garage covered in grease, catching on to the end of Alice's warning.

I growled at Rose, suggesting that she not say any more than that. It didn't look like she was going to listen. Thankfully before she could say another word, Alice jumped up from her seat on the couch and started pushing me towards the door.

"Go! I see her getting ready to leave!" She insisted and pushed me out the door. 

I took off like a bat out of hell, pushing myself to run as fast as I ever have. Speed wasn't a problem for me. When my newborn year began to come to an end, instead of losing my speed and strength and becoming like any average seasoned vampire, I became faster and stronger instead. Maria was ecstatic and it was only another reason, aside from my empathic abilities and skill on the battle field, that she appointed me her second in command. It gave me an upper hand when fighting and training the newborns.

I kept my extra abilities under wraps when it came to the family, and for good reasons. First, it was an uncommon asset for any vampire to have. Knowing Carlisle, he would turn me into one of his many experiments. I wasn't for that at all. I didn't like attention on me when it was unnecessary. I enjoyed being in the background and letting everyone else have center stage, while I quietly observed. It was one of my many war tactics I couldn't seem to shake. Always know the people around you and learn their weaknesses. I knew I had no reason to act this way with the family, but the Major in me didn't trust many people and wouldn't drop his guard. My Captain and his mate are the only ones as of late that he feels comfortable with as of late...and now I can add my mate to that list.

Secondly, Emmett. He prides himself in being the strongest, while Edward is the fastest. With Emmett, it would be a constant competition with him and after fighting and training for over a century of my life, that's not on the top of my list of things to do. But once in a while it's fun to joke around and wrestle with my little brother. Besting him in his strong point would only serve to wound his ego.

Lastly, it took long enough for the family, sans Alice, to feel comfortable enough around me to let their guard down and not feel constant fear around me. My scars are enough of a reason to fear me, let alone my history. If they knew that I could out do them in every physical aspect on top of my fighting skills, they would never let their guard down around me. Their common sense would tell them that they knew me and loved me. That I would never do anything to hurt any of them without reason, but their vampire instincts would counter act all of that and I would be back to square one. Being an empath doesn't help and feeling those emotions from everyone would only serve to make life harder for me than it already does where my gift comes into play.

I finally arrived at the address Jenks sent us, just in time to see her jump from the tree on the side of her house. My God, every time I see her, she seems to get more beautiful.

I followed her into Seattle and watched to see as to how she would choose her victims. I remember when I would walk into bars and parties, looking for a beautiful young girl to clench two of my cravings that always seemed to walk hand in hand for me. Sex and blood. I would compel them with my vampire abilities and feed them trust and desire from my gift. They would be powerless to stop it. Once I got them into a private or secluded area, I would have my way with them, then just as they reach their climax, I would strike, which in turn would trigger my own release. It was one of the most euphoric feelings of my life. Not to mention the only way I could effectively feed without their emotions getting to me. But unfortunately, once I was in full control of myself and sated, guilt and depression would take over.

Hearing a scream snapped me out of my musings and I watched as Lilly took off towards the sound. I stuck to the roof tops, making sure to head Alice's warning about staying down wind. She arrived at the scene to see a man holding a knife against a woman's neck, while attempting to unbuckle his belt with the other hand. He was completely unaware of the witnesses to his crime and his excitement and lust were rising with every tear or whimper from his victim. Sick fuck.

Lilly appeared behind him and wrenched the knife from his grasp and spun him around, pinning him to the wall with one hand and holding the knife to his neck as he did to the woman who was currently on the ground with wide eyes. Her fear rose during the transaction, but plummeted into relief once she saw Lilly had switched the situation into her favor. Lilly sent her off with a warning about traveling late at night, then watched as she gathered her things and took off, radiating gratitude and a strong sense of awe.

Turning her attention back on the scum bag, she tightened her grip on his neck and tucked the knife in the back of her pants. Noticing the knife was no longer against his neck, his lust rose thinking he had gotten lucky with a better option. He attempted to struggle out of her grasp, and then upon realizing his situation was hopeless, his lust dropped and his fear began to rise. Words were exchanged before she struck and latched her mouth to his jugular and began to drain him dry. Watching this, I had to adjust myself in my jeans for the way she hunted was fierce and erotic. Her preferences matched Peter and Char's and for that I was grateful. It was 100 times better than having to watch her feed on an innocent human who had family and friends who would miss them.

After she dumped the corpse into a dumpster and lighting it on fire, she took off and ran back towards Forks. At this point, I decided I needed to talk to her. Hear her voice. I wanted to help her understand who and what she is any way I could and hopefully begin to strengthen the mating bond that formed the second we looked into each other's eyes.

I sped up, running a little faster to catch up to her. She must have heard my approach, because I heard her stop about a quarter of a mile ahead. I slowed down to a walk once I was about 100 feet from here as not to scare her. I could hear her taking deep breaths of the air, trying to determine who or what I am by my scent. Recognition flooded her as I knew she realized it was me.

I broke through the tree line and into the moon lit meadow where she awaited me. The light reflecting off of her skin made her look radiant and I heard myself gasp at the sight.

"Jasper?" She asked, tilting her head to the side. "What are you doing here? Are you following me?" Panic and shame rose in her emotions as she must have realized that I had witnessed her hunting earlier on in the night.

"I needed to see you." I answered cryptically but honestly.

"So you did follow me." She sighed, resigned with the fact that I had indeed seen her actions in Seattle.

"There's nothin' to worry about. I'm not one to judge." I attempted to sooth her as I looked down towards my feet.

Understanding graced her features and she seemed to relax a little. "So you are like me." She wasn't a question.

"Well, not one hundred percent, but we are definitely the same." I smiled at her and she returned it with gratitude.

A look of uncertaincy suddenly appeared on her face and she began to fidget with her hands as her eyes broke contact with mine. "Can I ask you something?" She asked, almost as if she was afraid to know the answer.

"Anything." I confessed, unknowingly taking another step closer to her.

She looked up and smiled a small smile again. "Do you know what I am? Truly?" She asked with hope filled eyes, but behind them was fear. Fear of knowing the truth and not liking what she hears.

"For the most part, yes. I do. But there is something else." I answered as honestly as I could. "I won't be able to tell you what it is until I know more about you though. If you would like, Carlisle can do some research as to give you a better answer than I could."

She stood there for a moment, deliberating my offer to help her. I was hoping that she would accept, giving us a chance to become closer and a reason to hang out outside of school without me having to sneak around and spy on her.

Finally, she looked up with determination and acceptance and I knew she reached her decision. "I would like that. But only if you promise to be there. I don't understand why, but I feel like I can trust you. I know this might sound silly," She blushed "but I feel like you're my safe haven. Something inside me keeps pulling me towards you and my thoughts are never far from you. Am I making any sense?" She asked with her doe like eyes piercing through my soul as she begged me to understand.

The look on her face was so uncertain and desperate that I couldn't help but to step forward and envelope her into my arms. She stiffened at first, not expecting my reaction, but then immediately calmed and relaxed. I felt myself begin to purr for her. Something I have never done for anyone in my life. But it felt natural to do with her in my arms. As I continued to do this, I felt her whole body begin to relax. Finally, after a few minutes when I determined she could handle what I had to say, I pulled back and looked into her eyes.

"Yes." I breathed. "You make perfect sense. I feel the same pull. The same emotions you feel for me I feel for you."

"You seem to understand all this better than I do. I know it has to be something that involves what I am. What _we_ are. I know I won't understand any of this until I know more and I'm okay with that. Just promise me you will be there for me every step of the way. I don't think I can do this alone." She shook her head. "No, as a matter of fact, I _**know**_ I won't be able to do this alone. Earlier today, I was not certain that I even wanted to know now that I was given the chance, nor was I ready for that step. But, I know as long as your with me, I'll be ready." She gave me a watery smile as she held her tear's at bay.

I thanked God that she was already feeling the pull as strong as I was. I knew that as long as I had her by my side, I could accomplish anything and conquer any fear's or unknown obstacles in my way. I knew exactly how she felt, because in some ways, I felt the same way. And I would be there for her. Because I know that regardless of the fact that we just met each other, she would do the same for me.

"I'm honored that you trust me so and it would be my pleasure to help you through this. There will be a lot of self-discovery on your part, but I can promise you that it is not all bad. I just will be something new. You seem to already have taken the down side of this in stride." I admired as I tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "I can however, tell you what we mean to each other now, since it has nothing to do with your genetic makeup. I don't think I could stand it to not to be known, not only to myself, but to the world." She nodded her head in understanding and for me to continue. "You're what is known to our kind is my mate. Or in the human world, my soul mate. It isn't easy to find one's true mate, and when they do find each other, they stay together forever." I could feel her easy acceptance of this information and I watched as her eyes lit up at the news.

"There are things that come with being mates and new instincts that will be revealed through time. We will get to all that when we have our discussion with my family and since there are two mated pairs among them, I'm sure if you have any questions, the girls will be happy to help you." I explained. She smiled her thanks, but it seemed to have disappeared as quickly as it came.

"What's wrong darlin?"

"What if your family doesn't like me?" She mumbled as she looked down towards her feet as she dug one foot in the dirt.

I lifted her head by her chin and gave her a reassuring smile. "They already love you. We had a family meeting when we got home from school today and we discussed a few things, you being one of them, and they are all very anxious to meet you. Emmett and Edward, who already like you, even though they only just met you. Alice can see the future and she saw that you will be a great asset to our family and a great sister to them. Esme is a very maternal figure and very sweet. Carlisle always makes sure we all have whatever we need and is very compassionate. I promise you, you have nothing to worry about when it comes to my family."

He smile returned to her face and excitement poured from her in waves. "When can I meet them?"

"Tonight, if you'd like. If you can't, then you can come over tomorrow after school?" I asked her, eager to spend as much time with her as possible.

"Well, I need to get home tonight before my parent's realize that I am gone. Not to mention that it is 4:30 AM and my parent's get up at 6. So it will have to be after school. I can tell Bella that I am getting a ride home with you." She chirped.

"Sounds perfect." I answered. "Would you like for me to walk you home? We're only about two miles away from your house."

She nodded gratefully and we began our journey, hand in hand to her home.

On the way, we talked about everything and anything. Stories from when she lived in Vancouver, pranks Emmett would play on everyone, her friendship with Bella, classes we have together. Our conversation just flowed and before we knew it, her house was in sight.

We stopped a couple houses down and she turned to face me.

"Thank you for walking me home." She said appreciatively. "I'm so glad I ran into you tonight."

"Me too." I smiled as I drew her close to me.

I searched her eyes further to make sure I wasn't about to over step my bounds as I leaned in slowly towards her. I looked to her lips then back up to her eyes, asking for permission. She answered by leaning forward a bit further and I took this as her confirmation that it was okay to continue.

I close the distance between us and as our lips touched, I felt an electrical sensation come over me. I knew she felt it too, because she gasped and I took this as my opportunity to deepen the kiss. She responded eagerly and with fever as she put her hands in my hair to draw me closer. Our tongues danced and we held onto each other, letting the electrical sensations continuously wash over us.

Regretfully, she began to break the kiss, as we began to tone it down to soft pecks and chaste kisses.

I leaned my forehead against her's, as I looked into her doe like hazel eyes.

"Wow." She whispered as she came out of her daze.

"Yeah." I chuckled. "Wow indeed."

She pulled back and looked up at me. "So, I'll see you in school tomorrow?"

"You can count on it." I smirked.

She nodded and leaned up and pecked me on the lips once more, then began to back away. "I'll see you then." She smiled.

I watched, still in my Lilly filled haze as she jogged down the street to the tree next to her house, jumped up onto the branch parallel to her bedroom window, slowly opened the window, then disappeared inside.

I sighed to myself, then shook my head and smiled. 'I'm a love struck fool.' I thought to myself as I couldn't seem to wipe the grin off my face as I raced through the trees to my house.

**(Lilly's POV)**

I was sitting in the cab of Bella's truck on the way to school, impatiently looking out the window as we drove towards the school.

Bella looked over at me, noticing my impatience and gave me a look. "What's going on that your so excited to get to school this morning?"

"Nothing." I lied. "I had too much coffee I guess."

She didn't seem to buy my answer, so before she could ask any more questions, I turned the tables on her. "So, are you going to talk to Edward today?" I asked, knowing that his attitude towards her really pissed her off yesterday.

"Yeah." She answered as we finally pulled in to the school's parking lot. "I don't know what his problem was yesterday, but I intend on finding out."

We pulled into a spot near the front of the school and took off our seat belts. Before she could open her door, I stopped her by putting a hand on her arm.

"Be careful." I pleaded.

She looked at me quizzically for a second before deciding that I was serious. I knew by what she described that he was a blood drinker and something about Bella must have really triggered his lust for her to make him act as he did. She nodded he head in agreement even though I knew she wasn't sure why she did. I smiled at her as I removed my hand and opened the door to the truck, gathering my books as I got out, then walked around to the back of the truck and leaned on the bumper next to Bella.

I watched as she looked around for the Cullen's, then frowned when she saw that they had not yet arrived. I already knew this of course, considering I didn't smell any of them as I got out of the truck.

"Hey Bella! Hey Lilly!" Mike said with a wide smile as he and Eric approached us.

"Hi Mike. Eric." Bella smiled a smile that didn't reach her eyes as I nodded to them in greeting. I could tell that Mike liked Bella and she was only trying to be polite as he struck up a casual conversation with her.

"Hey Lilly." Eric blushed as he tried to start up his own conversation with me. He was harmless, and thankfully not pushy as Mike seemed to be at flirting with Bella.

"How are you Eric?" I asked.

"Great." He replied.

"Hey guys!" Jessica greeted as she walked up with Angela and Lauren, who did not look at all thrilled to see us as she said nothing.

"Hey Jess, Angela." Bella smiled, and then looked to Lauren. "Hi Lauren."

"Bella." She mumbled, only even answering her so that she didn't look foolish.

"What's up?" Tyler fist pumped the guys, and then winked in my direction. Seeing that, Lauren's scowl deepened then crossed her arms.

"Not much." Mike answered. "I was actually just about to invite Bella and Lilly here to go with us to La Push next weekend."

"What's in La Push?" I asked, never hearing about the place before.

"It's a beach we all go to and surf." Eric said.

"Umm...I don't surf." Bella answered looking to me.

"Never tried." I shrugged.

"There's whale watching too!" Angela added. "Come with us."

I looked to Bella and she nodded. "Ok."

At this point, I could see the Cullen's pulling up in a red BMW and a black viper. They all pulled into the three open spots across from us. I could tell that regardless of the chatter going on around us, neither Bella nor I was paying any attention.

We watched as Rosalie, Emmett and Alice got out of the red BMW. I smiled as I watched Jasper exit the viper and immediately look around the lot for me. Once we made eye contact, his face lit up in a breath taking smile as he began to approach me.

I looked over and I could tell Bella was confused and disappointed that Edward was a no show today and she gave me a sad smile.

I felt a hand grab my wrist and pull me against his chest. Jasper.

"Hi." I whispered as I looked up into his gorgeous topaz eyes.

"Hi." He mimicked me before he leaned down and kissed my lips.

I could hear the gasps and whispers from my friends as I kissed the most amazing guy I have ever met and I barely even knew him. I could only imagine how much more he could 'wow' me with as I get to know all of him, inside and out.

The warning bell rang before we could deepen the kiss, so we pulled back and smiled at each other.

"Let's get to class." He smiled, then reached down and grabbed my hand and began to pull me towards the school.

I looked over at my friends, who still seemed to be in shock over our PDA and as I looked at their faces, I could pick out who was jealous, shocked, or happy that we are together. From there I noticed that it was not only the people I was standing with that had this reaction, but other's from around the school as well.

I saw Matt standing not too far from where our group was standing and it looked like he stopped mid-stride on his way to talk to me when Jasper made his move.

I looked up at him and he smirked in my direction as we walked up the stairs in front of the school.

"You did that on purpose didn't you?" I raised my eyebrow in a challenge to deny it.

He only shrugged his shoulders and said "Just markin' my territory."

"I'm not a dog and neither are you!" I laughed.

"Thank God for that." He mumbled, and then spoke louder. "I just wanted everyone to know that you are mine." The look on his face was so sincere that I knew I couldn't be mad. I did enjoy that kiss after all.

"I'm glad you did." I smiled. "I'm also glad that your public claiming demonstration goes both ways." I smirked at him.

He looked at me and chuckled. "Yeah, I know. Just be prepared for the gossip queen of Fork's to hound you for answers in your Spanish class. If you listen to them behind us, you can hear talking with Lauren on what to ask you."

"Oh! That's right! Lauren has a big old crush on you!" I laughed as I bumped his shoulder, turning into Mr. Griffin's History class.

"Ugh, don't remind me." He chuckled, shaking his head as he gestured for me to go ahead of him down the aisle to our assigned seats. I knew that this was going to be a long day...

**A/N:**** Jasper and Lilly are happily together. Spoiler Alert: Next chapter, Lilly will get some answers as to what she is and will learn about the mating bond! I don't see any questions in the reviews, but I am loving the comments!**

**As I've stated before, if you have any questions you'd like answered about this story, just write it in the reviews and I will answer it in the Author's Note in the next chapter!**

**If you like this story, check out some of my others:**

**'The Major'**

**'Far Fetched Reality'**

**'Attempting to Covet'**

**'Pretexting'**

**'Perplexing Revelations'**

**'Other Worldly Beauty'**

**NEW! 'Twilight ReVAMPed'**

**Lastly, I would just like to let everyone know that I am now a Beta Reader and am currently accepting Twilight stories. I am doing any Jasper/Bella/any female lead and Bella/Emmett/Caius/Peter/Edward/Paul...but mostly Jasper stories :-)**

**PM me for the det's****  
><strong>**- Bella'Xo**


	7. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer. ****All publicly recognizable characters, settings etc., are the property of their respective owners. The original characters, ideas and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended. I only do this for fun. -B**

**Chapter 4**

**(Lilly's POV)**

I honestly couldn't tell you what happened during History. Jasper and I sat next to each other, our desks connected and the only thing I seemed to be aware of the entire class was him. He would continuously touch me, leaving fire under his touch. He would alternate from touching my lower back, to my thigh, to my forearm, to my hand. I fought to keep my eyes open and not close them, succumbing to the pleasure his touches were inflicting. Finally, after the teacher called on me and I couldn't even remember the question, let alone the answer, I had to do something or risk failing my classes.

I ripped a piece of paper from my notebook and began jotting down a note.

_Please, Baby. You need to stop. I haven't_

_been able to pay attention _

_to a single word _

_Mr. Griffen has said. - L_

I slid the note over to his desk and watched as he read what I wrote. Panic began to overtake his features and he gripped my hand tighter and he hurried and jotted down his reply. I began to worry and wondered what I said that could be troubling him so.

_Darlin...I can't. That's just not_

_possible for me to do right now. My_

_instincts are driving me to need to constantly touch you._

_To reassure myself that you're really here with me and _

_safe. The thought of even being away from_

_you next period is killing me as it is. Please take mercy_

_on me baby girl. I'm so sorry._

_Until we've completed our mating, then 3 days after,_

_I'm going to be an over-protective bastard._

_Well, more than usual anyways. You should_

_Also should know that I'm a very_

_jealous and possessive when it comes to you babe. _

_I'm sorry if this is going to be a problem_

_in any way for you. You will understand this_

_better after we talk tonight. _

_Do you think you can call your Mom_

_after school and ask if you can spend the night tonight?_

_I know it's a school night but we're going to need this._

_Plus, I want to be able to have some time with_

_you alone after we talk to my family. - J_

I read over Jasper's note and understood how important this was to him. Now that I thought about it, being separated from him next period for Spanish is going to be hard. I could feel my emotions take over as I began to have a panic attack. Jasper could sense that I was starting to freak out and immediately sought to comfort me.

He took my and into both of us his pulled it into his lap. He ran his fingers up and down my arm in an attempt to calm me.

"Shhh, darlin. It's okay. It's only for an hour for two classes today. We can do this." He soothed me, speaking in the fast paced language other's couldn't hear.

"I know, but it hurt's to think of being away from you...for any amount of time." I replied, taking deep, calming breaths.

"Hey, listen...as soon as your class begins and ends, I will be at that door dropping you off and picking you up. Okay?" He compromised and I felt an odd wave of calm crash over me, effectively settling me down.

"Promise?" I asked, turning to look at him in the eyes as I felt my eyes brim with tears.

"I promise." He answered with conviction and I gave him a sad smile, nodding my head in acceptance.

The bell for next period rang quicker than I wanted it too as we gathered our books and made our way to the door to walk to my next class. He walked with his hand resting on my lower back as we walked through the halls, then out the door towards the foreign language building.

As we walked, students stared and whispered to each other. Apparently, it was unusual for a Cullen to willingly speak to someone outside of their family.

'She is so lucky.'

'I can definitely see why he likes her. I mean look at her. She is gorgeous!'

'Of course one of the Cullen's has her by her second day. What does he have that I don't?'

'I heard that it was love at first sight. As soon as they locked eyes, they knew it was meant to be.'

'I don't understand how he doesn't give any of us girls the time of day, then, as soon as she arrives, he's all over her!'

It went on from there, but we both chose to ignore them and kept walking with our heads held high. As soon as we arrived at the door to my Spanish class, he dropped his hand from my back and took my free hand in his.

"I'll miss you." He mumbled, fiddling with the ring my mother left me that I decided to wear today.

"I'll miss you too." I smiled a shy smile at him. "Promise you will be here to meet me after class?"

"Of course." He replied as he looked up and returned my smile. He leaned him and pressed his lips lightly to mine, then pulled away as he tucked a piece of hair behind my ear. "Until then."

"Until then." I mimicked.

He brought the hand he was still holding to his lips and laid a chaste kiss on my knuckles and smiled. Reluctantly, he released my hand and turned away from me to walk to his next class. I watched him walk a little ways down the hall before I saw him look over his shoulder at me as he smiled and waved. I returned his gesture before I sighed and ventured in to my Spanish class.

As I walked down the aisle to my seat, I could see Jessica practically vibrating with suspension. Bella toned it down way further than Jessica, but I could still see the curiosity in her expression. I wasn't in my seat for more than two seconds before Jess started on me.

"So what's up with you and Jasper Hale? Are you two dating? When did it start? Is it true that it was love at first sight?" She babbled on.

"Whoa, Jess!" I exasperatedly placed my hand on her arm to silence her, making sure not to touch her bare skin. "Slow down!" I giggled.

"Well? Are you going to answer me or not?" She asked after taking a deep, calming breath.

"Yes." I smiled. "Jasper and I are dating, it started yesterday, and I guess you could say it was love at first sight, even though we haven't said it to one another yet…I can feel it." I sighed to myself.

"Mmm…" She sighed wistfully to herself. "You're so lucky. He's such a dream boat." She turned her attention back to me. "So, are you going to ask him to the girl's choice dance coming up next month?"

"Umm…I'm not one to go to dances. I mean, I guess if he has his heart set on going, I'm game. What about you? Jess? Bella?" I asked, attempting to bring Bella into the conversation. She was in the process of studying me with wary eyes that made me nervous.

"I-I'm not sure. I don't think I'm going either." Bella answered, and then looked to Jessica.

"I have my eye on the only current available Cullen. Edward." Jess smiled. "But I like Mike as well. What do you guys think?"

"Either one is fine. Edward is nice and Mike is sure…friendly." I answered honestly, noticing how Bella perk up at Edward's name.

"I think Mike would be a good choice. " Bella smiled sincerely. "You guys would make a nice couple."

"I know, right?" She chirped excitedly.

Just then, the teacher brought our attention to the front of the room for our lesson. The class dragged on extremely slow. I thought it would never end. Thankfully, with my enhanced senses, I was able to keep up quite well and even managed to correctly answer a number of questions the teacher asked, along with a worksheet we were required to work with a partner. Bella and I paired up, while Jessica and Tyler did their thing.

Finally, the bell rang and I gathered my books together and headed for the door. I smiled when I saw Jasper waiting there anxiously for me to exit the class room.

Instinctually, I walked out of the door and directly into his open arms. We held each other tightly, as though we hadn't seen each other in a week, rather than just an hour.

"Hello Lilly." He greeted me into my neck with a sigh.

"Hi." I blushed and tucked my face further into his neck, breathing in his delicious scent of sunshine, masculinity and apple pie. We reluctantly pulled away from each other and he took my books from my arms, adding them to his own pile with ease. He was such a gentleman and I loved that he managed not to stray from his roots. He told me the night before that he was born and raised in Texas and I loved the slight drawl that appeared when he was relaxed. "How was class?" I asked him.

"Long. It seems like the minutes tick by so slowly without you near." He admitted.

"I know what you mean." I nodded. "I feel like part of me is missing when you're not around." I admitted as we walked to the building housing all the science classes. All of my classes always came easy to me, especially Math, Chemistry and English. It was almost like I didn't have to think about it. "You will tell me why this is tonight, right?" I bit my lip nervously.

He turned to me before we entered the building and ran his thumb across my lip to bring it out of my mouth. "Of course, I would never back out of a promise I made to you, Lilly." He said with conviction as he dropped his hand back down to his side, then laced his fingers with mine as he grabbed my hand.

"I trust you." I smiled at him as he pushed the door open and motioned me to go through before him. I nodded my thanks, then walked through the hall towards the classroom in silence, just relishing the feeling of his hand in mine.

Chemistry was very much like English as we sat partnered up at our lab table. He continuously would touch me and I would try to concentrate on what the teacher was saying. Occasionally, Jasper would glare or growl too low for other's to hear, aside from me, at Matt, who had been giving him the evil eye since he saw us enter the room together. I could tell that Jasper scared him, even though he was trying to put on a brave front and act as thought his glares and stink eyes weren't bothering him.

Once again, the class ended and Jasper gathered my books along with his and helped me from my chair, holding his hand out like the southern gentleman he was. I could tell this wasn't an act he was putting on in the slightest, that this was truly how Jasper was raised and took seriously.

Just like yesterday, Emmett caught up with us on our way to English and we all talked animatedly about nothing in particular. I was invited to sit with them at lunch and I immediately agreed, not being able to picture being across the canteen from Jasper and not being able to touch him. I felt bad that I wouldn't be able to sit with Bella, so I asked if she could join us for today and they both agreed after looking at each other with a knowing look of dread. I wasn't quite sure what it meant, but a look from Jasper told me that I would be finding out about that tonight as well. I appreciated that they took into account that Bella was important to me and that with us both being new and friends, we liked to stick together where we felt comfortable.

Throughout English, Jasper sat behind me and would constantly touch my neck or shoulders. He would massage them or run his fingers through my long hair. It felt amazing, just like all his touches did, and it was all that I could do to keep my eyes from rolling into the back of my head, or touch him in return.

As soon as the lunch bell rang, we both simultaneously shot up from our seats and faced each other, immediately moving into his arms as he tucked his face into my neck and breathed in my scent.

"I don't like our seating arrangement." He mumbled.

"It was torture not being able to see you all during class." I whispered. "I could feel and smell you, but I couldn't see you."

"I need to be able to see your face." He said as we spoke in whispers back and forth, complaining or letting our needs be known to the other. I was so confused about why I was acting as though my entire being was thrown off without him in my line of sight and touch.

We pulled back with a sigh and noticed that Emmett had left us alone and was outside the classroom chatting with Rosalie. I felt my nerves spike and as if knowing what I was feeling, Jasper smiled at me reassuringly. A sudden burst of confidence shot through me and I looked at him questioningly. Where in the heck have these random feelings been coming from throughout the day?

"Another topic we will be discussing later." He promised. I sighed and nodded, understanding why he needed me to stay the night tonight. There were so many topics that were supposed to be brought up tonight that I had I feeling my head was going to burst at all the possible information I was to learn tonight.

We made our way into the hall towards Emmett and the beautiful blonde who I was about to meet. She looked at me with a small smile, making me feel a lot less intimidated.

"Lilly, this is Emmett's mate Rosalie. Rose, this is my mate, Lilly." Jasper introduced us, pulling me closer to his body as he smirked.

"It's wonderful to finally meet you Lilly. Please, call me Rose." She grinned, holding out her hand politely for me to shake.

I took he hand in mine and nodded my greeting. "It's great to meet you too, Rose."

We entered that canteen as all eyes landed on us. I was used to people staring at my old school, but not nearly this much. It must be because so many of us were together in one place. I always noticed that everyone's eyes automatically fell on us. It must be one of the traits of our kind, whatever we are. I sighed as we walked over to the lunch line to buy our props. I was going with a lemonade and a small bag of chips. Emmett, Rose and Jasper got trays of lunch like the rest of the students in the school.

Emmett must have noticed me eyeing their food because he immediately answered my unasked question.

"Since there are so many of us and with me being as big as I am, it only makes sense that we get normal meals like the rest of the humans." He said in our tone that the others couldn't hear.

"I guess that makes sense. Guys like you normally eat three of those on a regular basis for lunch." I smirked.

"Oh, ha-ha…real funny." He grinned; his dimples showing and making him look all the more handsome.

"You should see him when he hunts." Jasper chuckled, shaking his head.

"And how much he hunts. He's taken down 2 bears, 4 deer, 1 buck, and a mountain lion all in one sitting before." Rose laughed.

"Bears? Deer?" I asked confused.

"Oh. That's right. You're a human drinker, aren't you?" She asked, apologetically. I nodded slowly in conformation to her question, confused at the thought that they don't drink from humans.

"It's why our eyes are gold." Jasper clarified.

"As opposed to what exactly?" I cocked my head to the side confused as they waited for me to pay for my small lunch before they answered my question.

Half way to their table, the conversation picked back up as Alice appeared at my side.

"Most human drinker's we've run into have red eyes. You're the first that don't. We have gold eyes because we drink from animals." She contributed.

I felt my eyes widen at the indication that they could survive on the blood of animals. The notion that there was another way never even crossed my mind! But if human drinkers have red eyes and mine are hazel, what does that mean for me? Am I a freak? I mean, I remember Jasper said that we weren't one hundred percent the same, but the same none the less…however that's possible.

I was so lost in thought; I didn't realize we had gotten to our table until I heard Jasper clear his throat, effectively getting my attention. He was holding a chair out and gesturing for me to sit like a good southern gentleman. I knew he was being honest with his generous actions and was not just doing it to achieve something in return. There was something about him and this sincere look in his eyes and the way he carried himself proving this. The thought made me smile as butterflies began to invade my stomach.

Jasper took the seat next to me and pulled his chair as close as humanly possible, then turned it sideways so he was completely facing me. He took my right hand and held it in-between his and began running the tips of his fingers lightly over mine.

"You're so much warmer than we are." He mumbled softly.

"Not as warm as everyone else. I feel cold to them." I sighed wistfully. Oh, what it would be like to be normal.

"How cold does my family feel to you?" He asked curiously, looking up at me from our hands.

"Actually, your family feels almost normal to me. Except for you. You feel warm to me. I can't explain it, but it's a comforting feeling; your skin on mine." I divulged. He smiled a bit with a satisfied and pleased look gracing his features.

"Oh!" Alice exclaimed. "Edward's coming home early! He will be there by the time we get home from school."

"Where was he?" I asked.

"He went to visit our cousins in Alaska." Emmett answered, holding Rose close to his body.

"He was supposed to be there for a while. What he's doing home early is something I would love to know." Rose scowled.

"Stop it Rose. He deserves to be here as much as any of us." Alice defended her brother.

"I know that." She sighed apologetically. "I'm just worried about the reason. Something must have happened to bring him back now and I have a feeling that I'm not going to be too thrilled about whatever it is."

"We'll just have to find out then, won't we?" Jasper added, putting that topic to rest...for now anyways.

"Yeah. Carlisle will call a family meeting after our discussion with Lilly and he will fill us in on everything and what we plan to do about it." Alice said.

"Whatever." Rose rolled her eyes.

A few minutes and some small talk later, I heard the canteen doors open to reveal Bella finally arriving. Alice got a faraway look in her expression before she turned to me.

"Go ahead. She will accept!" She chirped excitedly.

How she knew what I was about to do or that Bella would agree, I had no clue, but I decided to leave it alone for now and bring possibly it up again at their house later.

I rose from my chair and began making my way towards Bella, who was walking with her books in her arm to the lunch line. I heard Emmett ask Alice what I was doing, then Rose begin to argue when she told them. It made me wonder what it was that she held against Bella. From what I knew, they had never even met. It was only her second day of school, as was mine.

I was half way across the canteen when I saw Bella trip. Her books dropped from her arms and scatter. She just caught herself in time before she face planted into the floor. I let out a relieved breath and ran at a human pace to help her. She was gathering her things as I bent down to help her. She looked up and gave me a grateful smile. All the other students did nothing but stare. Assholes.

"Here you go." I said, handing her the last of her things. "Are you okay?"

"Thanks. Yeah, I'm okay." She sighed, standing up. "This isn't exactly something that rarely happens to me. I'm kind of a klutz."

I laughed. "Yeah, you seem like the kind of person who would find something to trip over on a flat surface."

She began to laugh with me. It was good to see that she wasn't the type of person who took offense to everything and anything, even if it was only a joke.

Our laughter died down and I noticed she was looking over my shoulder. I turned my head to look to see what had her attention and noticed she was looking at the Cullen's table. They were all looking back at us, including Jasper who had a look of impatience and longing on his face. Bella seemed to pick this up as well.

"So, you and Jasper?" She asked, genuinely curious and not just looking for gossip like Jessica was.

"Yeah. I really like him." I smiled.

"When did this happen? You left my house pretty late last night and now this morning you are suddenly together acting like you've always been with him." She questioned in concern. Damn her for being so perceptive. But I couldn't fault her for it. She was someone who was already close to me, despite the short about of time we knew each other. I couldn't blame her for being skeptical and worried. Jasper and I were moving kind of fast. But I knew that when it's right, it's right. There's no reason to delay what you're truly feeling.

Noticing she was still waiting for me to answer, I scrambled and wracked my brain for a believable story.

"It happened last night. He called me and I suggested he come over for a little while. It turns out I made just as much of an impression on him as he made on me." There. That sounded about right. It wasn't totally a lie, just how we ended up getting together. I wasn't about to tell her 'last night after I left your house, I went to Seattle to hunt and he watched me drink the blood of a rapist and I caught him following me home. Turns out we are a species I have yet to know about and we have an undeniable and all-consuming connection that makes us crave each other's company.' Yeah, I'm sure that would go over well.

She didn't say anything. She just looked at me, searching for something. The truth maybe? I guess she either bought it or decided to let it go, because she just ended up nodding her head.

"So, do you want to come sit with us?" I asked, gesturing to the Cullen's table.

Her eyes grew wide and her heart beat sped up.

"Oh! N-no, I-I couldn't."

"Of course you can. I really want you to meet Jasper and his family is really nice." I pleaded.

She looked over at them one more time and sighed, then nodded her acceptance.

"Great!" I cheered. "Let's get you your lunch and then we will go sit down."

We made it through the lunch line relatively quick considering she was the last one who needed to get her meal. I noticed that everyone was watching us and whispering about Bella and I going to sit at the illusive Cullen table. I could hear her heart pounding in her chest the closer we got to the table.

Finally, I sat back down in my seat next to Jasper, who immediately wrapped me in his arms and kissed my temple. I giggled as I felt him begin to pepper light kisses from my temple, down to my shoulder.

"Bella, this is Jasper. Jasper, this is my friend and neighbor, Bella." I introduced them. He peaked up from my neck and smiled a smile that didn't reach his eyes.

"It's nice to meet you, Bella." He greeted.

"You too." Bella said as she fumbled with her lunch.

I noticed that he had stopped breathing until he put his face back into my neck and then began to breath deep again. I immediately felt horrible for not thinking sooner. Her blood is probably bothering him. She did have an amazingly sweet scent after all. I felt like kicking myself for not being more considerate of the others who were like me that lusted after blood.

Jasper must have noticed my mood shift, because he turned me to look up at him.

"It's okay. You don't understand fully yet and I can't fault you for wanting to spend some time with your friend." He whispered so low that there was no way that Bella would be able to hear him.

"But you're hurting." I argued. "I knew how sweet her scent is and I still invited her over here to eat with your family. I'm so inconsiderate."

"No! Don't say that, darlin. You are too considerate, trying to make everyone happy. I'm sure they can survive for the next twenty minutes. Not to mention that your scent calms me. As long as I hold you, I'll be fine. It's not something I am necessarily complaining about." He smirked.

I nodded my head and smiled at him gratefully.

"Hi, Bella! I'm Alice." She chirped happily from next to Bella and Emmett.

"H-Hi." Bella smiled nervously.

"This is Jasper's twin, Rosalie and this is their adoptive brother and Rose's boyfriend, Emmett." I introduced her to the rest of the table.

Emmett smiled a wide, dimpled smile in greeting, but Rose just gave her an evil glare as she nodded.

I could see how uncomfortable Bella was at the moment, so I tried to include her in our conversations as much as possible. Emmett and Alice were wonderful to her as well and by the end of lunch, she was much more relaxed. Rose just stayed quiet, ignoring Bella and anything to do with her, while Jasper stayed hidden in my hair, only talking to me softly in my ear once in a while. All and all, I thought it was a success.

**(Jasper's POV)**

My throat continued to burn through the entire lunch. Bella's blood was much sweeter than the rest of the humans and was affecting everyone at the table in their own way. Unfortunately, being an empath also has its curses. I could feel each of their blood lusts, only adding to my own. If Lilly wasn't here for me to hold and breathe in her scent, I have no doubt in my mind that I would have exposed us by killing this sweet smelling human.

Bella was shy and unsure of herself, but she wasn't afraid. I found that very unusual considering in one way or another, the rest of the humans we have come across unconsciously shed away from us and always had an undercurrent of fear in their emotions.

I didn't care much for the human, but she made Lilly happy and that was all that mattered to me. As long as it didn't have to do with Bella learning the truth about us, I wouldn't give her a hard time. I wouldn't take the chance of the Volturi finding out and putting Lilly's life at risk. Not to mention the family will be held accountable if she found out about us and the situation wasn't rectified. That included either turning her or killing her. Both options would devastate our family, and that now included my Lilly.

Finally, the bell rang dismissing us from lunch. Lilly and I walked hand in hand to our next class and as we sat down, I resumed with my touches and holding her in any way that I could manage. Though it was disrupting to Lilly at the moment, I could tell she was enjoying the feel of my touch.

The rest of the day flew by and I was in my last period Spanish class. I was fluent in the language from living in the south for so long, so I didn't need to pay attention to the lesson on the board. I just continued to think of my Lillian and how much I missed her presence at the moment. I feel like someone is putting pressure on my chest and squeezing my heart. Being apart from her was very hard on me and I knew it was hard on her as well. We both had to adjust and get used to the mating bond which would remain stronger than usual until we were properly mated.

After what seemed like hours, the last fifteen minutes finally came to an end. The bell rang signaling the end of class. I jumped up and pushed all my books off the desk and into my bag, not even bothering to organize them. At the fastest pace I could, while keeping the human facade, I zipped out of the classroom and down the hall towards the double doors and into the cold making a bee line for the gym.

They were just leaving the locker rooms when I arrived. I watched Lilly, Bella and Jessica emerge together. Lilly's gaze immediately found mine and she sped-walked across the gym towards me with a look of desperation and relief on her face as well as in her emotions. Once she was almost to me, I dropped my bag as she walked right into my open rms. I held her tightly to me as we breathed in each other's scents as the ache in our chests eased away to nothing. I breathed a sigh of relief at finally having her in my arms again. It was only for an hour, but it was an hour too long in my opinion.

Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Bella looking worried and confused, obviously thinking something happened to Lilly. It was sweet of her to care, but unless she was a vampire with a mate, she wouldn't understand. Jessica however, just looked jealous that Lilly was in my arms.

"Lil? Are you okay?" Bella asked gently, putting a hand on her shoulder.

Lilly turned her head, still buried in my chest, and looked at Bella, radiating appreciation. "I'm fine, Bella. Thank you though." She said giving her a small smile.

"Okay. Do you want me to wait for you by the truck?" Bella asked.

"No thank you. I am actually going to Jazz's house and spending the night." Lilly explained.

"Oh, alright. Call my cellphone if you need to talk. Otherwise, I'll see you at school tomorrow." Bella smiled.

Lilly grabbed Bella's free hand, giving it a gentle squeeze, and making sure to watching her strength. I was surprised that she didn't react to the cooler temperature of Lilly's skin. She may not feel like a cold marble statue like us, but her impenetrable skin was still much cooler than a human's.

"Alright. Thank you, Bella. You're the best friend I've ever had."

Bella's face lit up and she squeezed her hand back before she slowly began to back up towards where Jessica was waiting, then walked away.

I turned my attention back on Lilly and smiled when I noticed her bright hazel eyes looking up at me.

"Is everything OK, darlin?" I asked, sensing her confusion and slight fear.

"Every time I am a certain distance away from you, my chest hurts so bad. I could hardly concentrate and I almost hurt someone in class because I couldn't control my strength. Why is this happening? Is there something wrong with me?" Her eyes glazed over with venom and a tear fell down her cheek. I wiped under her eyes with the pads of my thumbs, drying her eyes.

"Oh, baby girl...there's nothing wrong with you. You are feeling our mating bond, or pull. I feel it too." I patted the place over my heart, emphasizing my point. "It will get easier to handle over time, but since it's new t takes time to get used to your body's reactions to me, whether they be good or bad, this being one of the bad ones. We will go more into detail about mates later tonight. But just to sooth your worries for now, I just wanted to make sure you understood that this is normal. You're the other half of my soul. You will feel things you won't feel with anybody else because of that."

She smiled a relieved, yet joyful smile.

"Thank you, Jasper."

She rose up to her tippy-toes and kissed my lips in a chaste, yet searing kiss. We didn't have time to deepen it or take our conversation any further. The winter sports teams were beginning to file in.

"We better get going. I know Esme and Carlisle are excited to meet you."

"Really?" She asked with a look of hope glowing from her eye. I could tell she was nervous about the discussion that was scheduled to happen this evening.

"Really." I confirmed. "Are you ready to go?"

"Yeah, I'm all set." She nodded.

We left the school and made our way o the parking lot where y siblings were waiting near their respective cars. I escorted Lilly over to my Viper and opened the door, giving her my hand to hold on to as she made her way inside the car. I shut her door, then made my war around the front to my side. I slid into my seat and started the car before putting it in gear and backing out of my spot.

**(Lilly's POV) **

I stood in front of the Cullen's house, if you could call it that, staring up at it in awe. It was a beautiful white mansion with glass walls and a beautiful wrap around porch. Rose, Alice and Emmett flitted past me at our natural speed and into the house. Jasper stood next to me, wrapping an arm around my waist.

"It's beautiful, Jazz."

"Thank you. I'm sure Esme will be pleased that you like it. This is the place we always return to without a doubt every so many years, our home base if you will. So she designed the house herself down to the very last piece of silverware." He explained.

I turned to look at him with a stunned expression.

"Wow. She seems to be very gifted." I acknowledged.

"Yeah, she is." Jasper smiled fondly, clearly thinking about his adoptive mother. "Shall we go inside?" He asked, gesturing with his free hand to the front door

"We shall." I grinned, grabbing his hand and allowing him to toe me inside.

**A/N:**** So, what do you guys think? I'm sorry, I know I said that this was going to be the chapter that she finds out about herself and what she is, but I just couldn't manage to fit it in this chapter. I didn't think this was going to be as long as it was and if I included the discussion of her vampirism and past, the chapter would have been WAY too long. But rest assured...the next chapter will be posted by tonight. I am on a roll right now and don't want to lose my inspiration. **

**If you have any questions, leave them in my reviews and I will answer them on my next author's note!**

_By the way, if anyone is looking for a beta, I am not accepting twilight stories. I will accept any Jasper/OC/Bella/or any female lead or Bella/some selected male roles. Just PM me with any questions. _

_-Bella'Xo_

**If you like this story, you will love some of the other stories I have written!**

'The Major'

'Far Fetched Realities'

'Perplexing Revelations'

'Other Worldly Beauty'

'Pretexting'

'Attempting to Covet'

'Twilight ReVAMPed'


	8. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer. ****All publicly recognizable characters, settings etc., are the property of their respective owners. The original characters, ideas and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended. I only do this for fun. –B**

**Chapter 5  
><strong>**(Lilly's POV)**

Looking around the inside of the Cullen's home, I was amazed at how light and open everything felt. The whole feel to it just radiated a homey feeling. I looked around at all the beautiful art work and arches that decorated the home as Jasper led me into what appeared to be the living room. There, two people, who I assumed to be Carlisle and Esme, stood to greet me.

Carlisle had blonde hair and like the rest of us, pale skin. His gold eyes were very warm and welcoming and he stood about 6'2. Esme had reddish brown hair with natural golden streaks; giving it a sun kissed look. She was about 5'8, pale, with the same beautiful golden eyes the rest of the Cullen's have.

"Esme, Carlisle, I would like you to meet my mate, Lillian McLean. Lilly, these are my parents, for all intents and purposes, Carlisle and Esme Cullen." Jasper said, introducing me to the couple with his hand on my lower back.

"It's wonderful to finally meet you Lilly." Carlisle said, shaking my hand.

"It's nice to meet you too." I smiled.

"Hello Lilly, welcome to our home." Esme greeted me, pulling me into a hug.

"Thank you, Esme. You have a very lovely home." I complimented her.

"Thank you, dear. It's my favorite hobby, interior decorating." She smiled.

Just then, I noticed Edward walk down the stairs and into the living room with the rest of us.

"Hello Lillian, it's nice to see you again." He smiled, taking my hand and placing a gentle kiss on my knuckles.

Jasper began growling and pulled me behind him with his arm around my waist. Edward looked slightly stunned for a fraction of a second before he too crouched down and began growling out of instinct.

"Now, boys. Knock it off." Carlisle insisted. "Edward didn't mean any harm to your mate and Edward, you should know better than to approach a newly mated pair and greet the female the way you did; regardless if it was a harmless gesture or not."

"Yes sir." They both mumbled apologetically.

"Well, now that we are all here, why don't we get started? We do have a long night ahead of us and Carlisle has to be at work by eleven for the night shift." Esme suggested.

We all took our seats around the room, Jasper and I on the loveseat with his arms around my middle, Edward on a chaise, and everyone else on the sectional couch.

"To start, why don't you tell us what you know about yourself, Lilly?" Carlisle asked.

"Um…" I looked at Jasper nervously and he gave me a gentle squeeze. A burst of confidence suddenly wrapped itself around me. I looked up at Jasper wide-eyed.

"I'll tell you later." He smiled, kissing my cheek.

"Ok." I nodded. "Well, I have a very good memory. I remember every moment of my entire life from the time I was in my mother's womb."

"That's interesting." Carlisle mused. "Most don't remember their human life after they were turned."

"Turned?" I asked confused.

"You know. The torturous three days of hell that changed you into a vampire?" Emmett cocked his head.

"Vampire? Is that what I am?" I asked rhetorically. "I guess that makes sense, considering the fact that I drink blood."

"So you remember your entire life, but you don't remember the transformation?" Rose asked.

"I don't think I went through a 'transformation.' I would have remembered that." I told them all, very confused.

"Then how did you become like you are?" Edward asked.

"Well, all my life I was extremely smart, with an amazing memory and a knack for my school work or any hobby I picked up. People were always drawn to me as a little girl and it took a law suit for my adoptive parents to get me out of the orphanage." I explained to them. "When I hit puberty, I began to develop cravings for blood. It started out with me eating very rare, almost raw, meat and it developed from there. One night, I just lost it on a taxi driver who was driving me home from the airport after visiting a friend who had moved. Shortly after that, the extra speed, strength, stronger senses, and my gift of course became known."

"Gift?" / "So you were _born_ a vampire?" Rose and Carlisle asked at the same time.

"I guess so. I mean, the way I was born wasn't very traditional. I killed my mother." I ended in a whisper, grabbing hold of my locket.

"How?" Esme asked gently.

I went on from there to fill them in on my mother and how I was born. I told them about the golden eyed man who took me from my dead mother's arms and grabbed things that he knew would be important to me, before setting the house on fire and dropping me off at Bishop Shannahan. I filled them in on everything, aside from my gift, which brought me to where I am now.

The room was quiet after I finished. Jasper was rubbing soothing circles in my palm, giving me strength to talk about things that happened to me as a scared little girl, not only having to go through puberty and not understanding my own body, but developing my vampire side as well.

"I'm so sorry to hear about your mother. Did you say you had a picture of your parents?" Carlisle asked. I nodded my head affirmative. "If you could bring it with you next time, I would really appreciate it."

"So do you know what's going on, Carlisle? I mean about what she is exactly?" Rose asked.

Carlisle pursed his lips and then answered his hypothesis. "It appears that she is a half vampire, half human hybrid. She has all the characteristics of appearing human, but has all of our special abilities and immortality."

"So I will never age past adulthood?" I asked.

"Most likely, not. I will have to do some research, of course. But I am willing to bet that she won't age anymore, since she is now eighteen. From what it sounds like from your story is that your mother conceived you with a vampire while she was still human, and since her body is able to change and she has a minstrel cycle, she was able to get pregnant with you and raise you in her womb until you were ready to be born. Why you weren't born vaginally, I am not sure. But now that I know more about you, I know what I will be looking for." He answered.

"Male vampires can have children with human females?" Esme asked, placing a hand over her mouth in shock.

"Considering how uncommon that it is for the human to survive having intercourse with a vampire, I can understand why it wasn't discovered before. But yes, it does appear that way darling." Carlisle deciphered.

I noticed Esme and Rose had a sad look on their faces while their mates comforted them. I felt my eye brows knit together in confusion.

"Female vampires can't have children." Edward answered my unasked question, reading my mind.

"Oh." I said, looking at the two women sympathetically.

"Do you still have a…you know?" Emmett asked. I knew he would be blushing if he could.

I shifted embarrassingly, a light blush rising to my cheeks. "Yeah." I mumbled.

"So you can have children like you?" Rose perked up a bit. Probably at the thought of being an aunt.

"I guess." I shrugged. I can't say that I would want children right now, but in the future with Jasper as their father, I could definitely see myself considering it.

"Rose." Edward warned and shook his head. I looked at him then Rose curiously. This reminded me…

"Do any of you have gifts aside from Edward?" I asked.

"I can see the future!" Alice chirped.

"I can feel and manipulate the emotions around me." Jasper said with a slightly nervous edge. I turned to look at him.

"So you're the reason my emotions have been so mixed up!" I concluded, relieved that there wasn't something wrong with me.

"Uh…yeah. Guilty." He rubbed the back of his neck uncomfortably, probably thinking I was mad at him. "I'm sorry, darlin. I was only trying to help when you needed it. I wouldn't intentionally influence your emotions for my own gain."

I turned to face him and put both my hands on either side of his face. "I know that, Jazz. I was just confused all day because one minute I would be nervous and anxious, then next I would be calm and confident. Like just now before I told my story. You're not the type of man who would do something like that. Just promise me that unless I need you to, you won't mess with them."

He put his hands on mine and brought them down into his own. "I promise." He leaned in and placed a chaste kiss on my lips.

Every time he kissed me, it feels like the whole world falls away and it's just the two of us. We were so engrossed in each other that we didn't notice the other's in the room anymore until we heard a throat clear. Turning our heads and breaking the kiss, we saw that everyone wore different expressions. Emmett was smirking; no doubt he was the one who cleared his throat, Rose wore a small smile, Carlisle looked happy for his son, Esme was almost in tears, Alice was looking wistful, and Edward looked more indifferent. Though, he seemed to be hiding behind an emotionless mask.

"Um…how about anyone else?" I asked, trying to take the attention off of Jazz and I.

"Well, Emmett is stronger than any vampire I've met, but we don't know if it's a gift or not." Rose answered.

"What about you, Lilly? You mentioned that you had a gift." Carlisle prodded.

I felt myself get nervous and began to fidget. I felt a wave of calm and confidence from Jazz as everyone looked at me expectantly. I heard Edward and Alice gasp, probably finding out what my gift is before I opened my mouth.

"I…um…I can control things with my mind." I whispered, but I knew they could still hear me.

"What do you mean?" Jasper asked.

Deciding to demonstrate, I flicked my wrist and watched as the chair Edward was seated in levitated with him on it. Everyone gasped around the room at my display.

"You're amazing." Jasper whispered in my ear, then kissed my temple.

"So when you say you can control things with your mind, are you referring to just objects or people too?" Carlisle asked.

"People too, but I don't like to use it on them." I said.

"Why not? It's bad ass." Emmett chuckled, touching the chair that still was now gentle floating down tto the floor with Edward looking around amazed.

"Really, Emmett? You want to know? Here, I'll show you why." I growled, getting frustrated that he couldn't see the repercussions of such a talent.

I narrowed my eyes and began to think out commands of what I wanted him to do. I made sure he couldn't speak or move. I needed him to have his other senses so he could see what I was making him do. I had him walk across the room and into the kitchen. I made him pick up a knife from the knife block, then walk back towards us. Knowing that the knife wouldn't hurt him, I made him hold it to his throat as if he was going to slit it. I heard the room gasp as understanding settled in to the group as they watched Emmett.

"It's not right to take away someone's will power. I only use it when I have to. If Emmett was a human being, I could have him slit his throat and not be able to do anything about it, let alone call for help. I can make someone forget something, control their movements, make them think something is happening when it's not. It's not fair that someone can have this kind of power." I told them with conviction.

I released Emmett from my gift and I watched as he dropped the knife as if it had burned him. He looked at me wide eyed, as did everyone else. They were afraid of me. Jasper was afraid of me. Tears began to fall down my face as my body became wracked with sobs. My mate was afraid of me because I had to get upset and prove a point.

**(Jasper's POV)**

I couldn't believe what I had seen. I was in shock at how powerful my mate was. It scared me, not because she would use her gift maliciously on my, _our_, family, but because if the Volturi or the Romanians found out about her, they would attempt to covet her.

I heard a sob break out from Lilly and I immediately turned to look at her. I saw she had her head in her hands and she was crying. I immediately reached over and plucked her up and put her in my lap. I tucked her head into my neck and started to rock and purr for her.

"She thinks we are all afraid of her." Edward mumbled.

I pulled her away from me, just enough so that I could see her face and she could see mine.

"Darlin, I'm not afraid of you. _We_ aren't afraid of you. Just shocked of the extent of your gift, and worried if the wrong people find out and try to take you away from me. Just like you know I wouldn't control someone's emotions and the way they feel to get what I want, I know you wouldn't either." I declared, wiping her tears away.

Little by little, with some help from me, she seemed to calm down. I gave her a small smile that she returned, and gave her a peck on the lips.

"We don't ask for the gifts that we are given. I would know." Edward said, squatting in front of Lilly and I, then taking her hand. "Every time I hear something personal in somebody's thoughts, I can't help but to feel like I am invading their privacy and that I shouldn't be able to hear them. For that reason, I keep what I hear in people's thoughts to myself, unless I am worried that they will cause harm to themselves or other's. It isn't the gift that makes you who you are, Lilly. It's what you do with that power."

She looked at him for a moment, then leaned forward and kissed his cheek and gave him a small smile. I pulled her closer to me, not liking that she kissed him. Even if I knew it was a harmless way to thank him for his kind words.

"Thank you." She whispered, her emotions showing that she was feeling marginally better. He just smiled and nodded at her, squeezing her hand before letting it drop.

'_Thank you, Edward._' I thought to him. _'I really appreciate what you just did to make my mate feel better.'_

He looked at me and nodded his head in a gesture saying that it wasn't a problem. Then, he walked back to his chair and took his seat. Everyone else looked at Lilly with warm smiles and it just made her feel all the more better about the situation. I noticed her focus was on Emmett, who was still standing where he was when she released him from her control. He was looking at her intently, before he approached her. He looked to me for permission just before he made it to us and I nodded my consent. Emmett enveloped her in his arms and held her tightly for a few moments before he let her go. She immediately came back to me and settled herself on to my lap as Emmett made his way back to his seat on the couch.

"So, I realize we still have a little more to talk about while we are all gathered together. Before we do that, we should get Lilly up to speed now that she is a member of our family." Carlisle began and turned to Lilly. "Lilly, our family does not feed on humans. I am not going to tell you how to feed. Whether you wish to stay with human blood, or try animal is completely up to you and is a commitment you should not take lightly. It is not easy and we have all had our slips. It's not a completely satisfying diet, but it keeps us from taking a human life. I understand that you only feed on criminals and those who hurt others and I believe you have made a very wise choice when it comes to the selection of your victims.

"It seems as though Edward has found his singer. A singer is someone whose blood is especially appealing to a vampire. The singer usually doesn't live past the initial meeting, but Edward's singer did. That's why he left yesterday night." He turned to Edward. "Anything to add, Edward?"

"I left because I was afraid that I would slip and end up hurting the girl. While I was in Alaska, I got to thinking that I am not one to back down and that I'm stronger than that. So I came back to overcome this and rise above everything." He said.

"That's right!" Emmett said, clapping him on the back.

"Do you have a plan of action, son?" Esme asked.

"I decided that I am going to try and desensitize myself to her scent. I am going to try to get to know her and be her friend."

"WHAT?" Rose exclaimed.

"Oh, honey. That's a great idea." Esme praised.

"This is perfect! I really like her!" Alice smiled, practically vibrating out of her seat.

"Good choice, son." Carlisle nodded.

"Good luck, brother." I smiled and gave him a small nod.

"Hope everything turns out alright, man." Emmett squeezed his shoulder.

Everyone said all of this at once and Lilly just looked on surprised at everyone's reactions. Immediately, Rose was on the attack.

"You better not screw this up if this is what you have to do, Edward, because I'm not moving again! We're finally seniors and I want to graduate! Not to mention, this is Lilly's first time in high school and she's a senior too. It's only fair that she gets to graduate." Despite her attack, I appreciated how she stuck up for Lilly and her right to graduate.

"Rose, take it easy on Edward. I think he is doing a very wise thing." Carlisle chastised her.

"Yeah Rosie, not that you don't bring up some valid points, but is it fair that a human run Edward out of his home? Away from his family?"

She sighed. "Alice?"

"Everything will be fine if he comes back to school with us tomorrow. We just will have to take it a day at a time. We will look out for you, won't we?"

"Fine, but don't fuck this up." Rose crossed her arms over her chest and didn't say anything more about it.

"If this is something you feel you can do and you want to try, I will support you, Edward." Lilly smiled at him. She is so kind hearted and I love that about her.

Me? I had mixed feelings on the topic. I was proud of Edward for coming back and pushing himself to do this, but I know it will kill Lilly if her best friend gets killed.

"Do you really feel you can do this, Edward? I mean, this is a human life we are gambling with here." I asked. _'Not to mention, that's Lilly's best friend that you are talking about.'_ I thought to him, not wanting to throw the news on her that way.

"I know I can do this. I wouldn't put her life at risk like that." He confirmed.

"Then it's settled." Carlisle disclosed.

"Um, who is his singer anyway?" Lilly asked. Everyone avoided eye contact with her and dread filled me knowing I was going to be the one who has to tell her. I know she cares for the girl very much, regardless of just meeting her yesterday.

"Lilly," I turned her towards me. "Edward's singer is Bella Swan."

She gasped, then whipped around to face Edward, wide eyed. "Please, Edward. Don't hurt my friend. I have complete faith in you, but please…be cautious. She's the first _human_ friend I ever had that I actually feel close to."

"I promise Lilly, I will do everything in my power not to hurt her." Edward swore with determination.

"Thank you." She said. I could tell she was scared for her friend, regardless of her faith in Edward.

"Alright, you kids can go. I'm sure everyone wants some time to themselves. Not to mention Lilly and Jasper probably have more to talk about." Carlisle said, dismissing us.

I helped Lilly up off my lap and got up off the couch, pulling her towards the stairs towards my bedroom and study on the third floor. We still had a lot to talk about, namely what it means to be mates.

I still can't believe I have one. Every time I think about it, I keep wondering what I did to deserve one as wonderful and beautiful as her.

**A/N:**** Well here you go, as promised! What did you think? Next up is the mating discussion and Edward's first day back at school. I know I skipped through the whole week that Edward was missing, but I really wanted him there for the family discussion with Lilly. Not but only that, I wanted to make some changes, not wanting Edward to go away for too long. If you have any questions, feel free to leave them in my reviews and I will answer them in my next author's note.**

**momoXvolturi – Will we ever find out who Lilly's real father is and will he make an appearance in this story? **_Yes, we will find out who her father is, but he won't be making an appearance in this story. He won't be showing up until the sequel. (hint hint) THERE WILL BE A SEQUEL! _

**If you like this story, check out my other ones! They are all Twilight based as of now and there are plenty of them in progress to get engrossed in. **

_**Also, I am currently accepting Jasper/ any female lead stories to beta, along with Bella/ a few selected male leads. Just PM me for the det's!  
>Bella'Xo<strong>_


	9. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer. ****All publicly recognizable characters, settings etc., are the property of their respective owners. The original characters, ideas and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended. I only do this for fun. –B**

**Chapter 6  
><strong>**(Jasper's POV)**

"This is my study." I told her, opening the door and letting her inside. She looked in awe at all the books that littered the walls and all of the pieces of history I displayed around the room; mainly from the Civil War.

"This is amazing! And this Civil War pieces around the room…are they real?" She asked excitedly.

"Yes, they are." I nodded, smiling at her enthusiasm. "Are you a fan of history?"

"Oh my gosh, it's my favorite subject! My room is littered with history books about all of the wars around the world, important discoveries, stories of people who had an impact on the world…I love it! Every time I read something new, it enthralls me and I read everything I can on the topic to learn more." She told me with a glow about her. She truly is my perfect mate, my other half.

"Do you have a favorite?" I asked smiling more than I had in who knows how long.

"Well, the Civil War is probably my favorite war to read about. I have too many favorites to pick one historical event. But one of my favorite stories to read about from the Civil War was about a Major who had disappeared one night in Texas. To this day, nobody knows the truth about what happened to him. They have their ideas and guesses, but no concrete evidence." She shrugged.

I stared at her wide eyed, then flitted over to retrieve a particular book on a shelf. I opened up to the chapter about me, my life, my army carrier, and my disappearance. I handed her the book and took a step back, waiting for her reaction.

"Yes! This is him! Major Jasper Whitlock. I should have known you would be familiar with him. He disappeared one night after evacuating a town of women and children in Texas." She turned the page. "He…" She stopped and looked up at me. I can tell she was making the connection as she looked back down at the picture on that page of me in my uniform, then back at me again. Her eyes grew wide and amazement and excitement began to color her emotions. "Y-Your him, aren't you? You're Major Jasper Andrew Whitlock."

I gave her a half smirk, half smile and nodded. She gasped, then smiled and began practically vibrating.

"So that's what happened to you! You were changed into a vampire! How did it happen? Will you tell me?" She asked with hope filled eyes.

This is the part I was afraid of and dreading, but I couldn't lie to her about who I was. I am afraid that she won't want me anymore after she hears about all the horrific things I did in the first century of my vampire life.

I sighed. "It's not at all a happy story by any means. I am ashamed of everything I've done and I can understand if you don't want me anymore after you hear this story. But you deserve to hear this from me before we get any more involved with each other."

"Jasper, I don't care about the things you did in the past. I only care about the kind of person you are now. The kind, amazing, thoughtful man you are today. I'm not going anywhere and you can count on that." She said with conviction.

"We'll see then, won't we?" I mumbled, taking her hand and walking over to the door on the right wall and opening it, pulling Lilly through.

"Is this your bedroom?" She asked looking around approvingly. I nodded and dragged her over to my bed, then settled against the headboard, positioning her on my lap, straddling and facing me. I bent my knees so she could lean back and get comfortable.

"You seem familiar with my human life and my career as a Major. I'm sure you have figured out by now that Rose and I aren't really twins. That it's just a charade we put on for the humans." She nodded her confirmation. "I am the oldest one in the family aside from Carlisle. He is around 300 and I am 150 years old.

"After evacuating those women and children in Galveston, I stayed behind and did one last lap of the city; making sure I didn't miss anyone. When I was satisfied, I began my track to catch up with the rest of my men.

"About a mile from Galveston, I discovered three women on the side of the road and like a good soldier, I offered them my aid. I thought they might have been stragglers from the group. As I approached them, I realized that they were all stunningly beautiful. There was a blonde, a brunette, and a Hispanic woman. I hopped off my horse and approached them, bowing to them in greeting. Their beauty stunned me into silence."

**:: Flashback ::**

"_He's speechless!" The brunette giggled._

_The blonde leaned forward, smelling the air around us. "Mmm…lovely." She sighed referring to what I now know was my scent. She opened her eyes and they were pitch black._

"_Patience, Nettie." The Hispanic woman scolded her, putting her hand on her shoulder as she looked to be inspecting me from a distance. "Concentrate." She whispered._

"_He's young, strong…and an officer too!" The brunette remarked._

"_But don't you sense it? There's something else there too." The Hispanic woman told them. "I want to keep this one." She smirked. _

"_Then you better do it Maria." Nettie said. "I can never stop once I've started." She ended in a whisper._

"_Very well Lucy, take Nettie hunting. I don't want to have to watch my back while I'm trying to concentrate." Maria told them._

_The two seemed to disappear into thin air, leaving me alone with Maria. At this point, I was a little frightened, but I held my ground. I was not accustomed to having to fear women. I was raised to protect them._

"_What's your name, soldier?" Maria asked, bringing me out of my shocked state._

"_Major Jasper Whitlock, ma'am." I answered politely._

"_I hope you survive, Jasper." She said as she approached me. "You may be of great use to me."_

_She leaned in, as if she was going to kiss me. At the last second she struck; biting into my neck. The last thing I saw before I succumbed to the pain was Maria's smile._

"I woke up three days later in an old barn. From there, Maria introduced herself and her two sister's as Nettie (the blonde) and Lucy (the brunette). They explained to me what I was and about the war's that were going on in the south under the human's radar." I explained.

"What wars?" Lilly asked, intrigued.

"In the south, even to this day, there are small armies of newly made vampires lead by a seasoned vampire. It all started when vampires began to realize that if a few vampires claimed a specific territory, or city, that they would be able to feed more often and not risk being discovered as opposed to many vampires feeding in that city.

"A vampire named Benito came up with the easiest way to accomplish this. He created a bunch of vampires and used them to fight his battles and protect his territory. You see, during the first year, the vampire is at its strongest, most vicious. It is because they still have their human blood in their tissues and after the first year, it starts to fade and they become like a regular vampire. After that first year, they would be destroyed and he would start again with a new batch of newborns. Benito won his territory and began expanding; others began to follow his example creating their own armies." I described.

"And Maria was making this kind of army?" Lilly questioned.

"Yes. She was very good. I was her first soldier aside from her sisters. She created 9 more after me. She trained us herself. I was very good. I never lost a battle to this day. I was the fastest, strongest, and most level headed of the bunch. She began to show favoritism towards me, which made the other's jealous. (At this time they were all men). I was rewarded often." I cringed, remembering Maria's 'rewards.'

"What kind of rewards?" Lilly asked.

"It varied, depending on how pleased she was. It was usually extra feeding privileges, a particularly sweet smelling human, or sex." I mumbled.

"Oh." She sighed. "Ok. I was just curious."

I looked at her sympathetically. I knew it was the sex that bothered her the most. "I'm sorry baby."

"It's okay; it was before I was born. I just hate to think of you with anyone else." She gave me a sad smile. "Continue with your story?"

"Sure. Anyways, the others became jealous and frequently tried to pick a fight with me. I ended up killing them often. Though Maria was agitated that she had to create new soldiers, she still was pleased with my abilities. After she learned of my gift, she became even more ecstatic.

"Once my newborn year was up, we discovered that instead of my speed and strength waning like the rest, it only increased. Maria was thrilled and ended up making me her second in command. I was put in charge of creating new soldiers, training them to fight, keeping them calm and focused with my gift, dealing out the punishments, and destroying them once their year mark was up.

"As the years past, I helped Maria and her sisters expand their territory. Our army was well trained and with my experience in the art of war and Maria's leadership, we were unbeatable. But Maria got greedy and her sisters were becoming jealous and tired of Maria. They began to show signs that they were going to turn on Maria and I in their emotions. So we destroyed them before they had the chance."

"Years decades went by and at this time, our territory was the largest in the south. I had a Captain named Peter helping me. He was in charge of watching the newborns. He called it 'babysitting duty.' He was the only one I ever let my guard down around. It took him awhile to get past my tough and uncaring demeanor, but that silly fucker managed it." I laughed to myself remembering his antics and persistence.

"One day, it we were ordered to dispatch all the newborns that were at their one year mark. Peter was acting strange and his emotions were all over the place. He kept trying to convince me that some of them had potential and didn't need to be destroyed. I told him no, that Maria said that _all_ of them needed to be killed. He was getting more and more distraught and worn out the further we went down the list. Finally, I called forth a newborn woman named Charlotte and his emotions went haywire. He was furious. I couldn't understand it until he looked at her when she came into view. It was pure love. An emotion I hadn't felt in decades. It made me realize that what Maria and I had wasn't real. They were mates and had been hiding it from everyone, and with good reason. Maria didn't allow mated vampires in her army. If they were discovered, both of them would be destroyed.

"Peter screamed at her to run and she took off. I looked at him still puzzled and he stood there ready to take me on if I was to chase after her. I ended up telling him to just run. That I would tell Maria that they escaped. I could feel his gratitude and familial love for me. I was punished severely for their escape.

"It was after this that my depression started. It got so bad that my mind ended up creating an alter ego in order to cope. Peter calls it my Major mode. He is the Major of the Southern Armies. The one the legends speak about. If you ever meet him, whom I have no doubt that you will, he won't hurt you. Just be respectful and submissive. He is a very dominant man and demands respect from all of those around him. He is cold, calculating, and ruthless. Maria gave him the nickname, 'the God of War'.

"Five years passed since I let Peter and Char escape. I can't tell you how many times during those years that I contemplated suicide. Letting myself get destroyed in one of the many battles, fueling the newborn's emotions so they would attack and kill me, tossing myself into a fire...even Maria's patience was wearing thin by then. I began to feel the same emotions I felt from Nettie and Lucy right before they turned on us. I knew I either had to destroy her first or be prepared to die. I had tried talking to her about what was bothering me but she wasn't at all sympathetic to my conundrum. I realized then that she never loved me. I was only her puppet and she pulled the strings." I could feel my voice begin to shake as I relived my past with each word I spoke. Lilly wrapped her arms around me and held me close as I continued with the rest of my story.

"I was on my way back from hunting one night when I smelled Peter's scent nearby. He showed up and went on to tell me that Maria lied to all of us. That there is a better way to live up in the north, that vampires lived among the humans without their knowledge and didn't fight for territory. That they had run into many of our kind and it didn't end in a fight. Needless to say I was shocked and in that same conversation agreed to leave with Peter. We met up with Charlotte the next town up and they took me to their home in Montana."

"More years passed and my depression became worse. I couldn't understand it until Peter realized that it was always at its worst after hunting. It turns out I could feel the emotions of my victims as I killed them and it brought on the depression. I tried to feed less but I would always end up getting so thirsty that I couldn't resist and would slaughter more than one human, bringing back the depression. A few months later, I decided to go out on my own for a while.

"More months past and I ended up in Philadelphia. It began to rain, so instead of staying out in the rain, I ducked into a diner as to not bring attention to myself. Once I was inside, I immediately smelled another vampire and my senses were on high alert. I watched as a little pixie like vampire hopped off her stood and bounced right up to me. Her emotions intrigued me. They were so pure and happy. 'You kept me waiting a long time,' she told me. I ducked my head like a good southern gentleman and said 'my apologies ma'am.' From there she went on to tell me about herself and that she could see the future. That we were going to be joining a family that fed on animals. At first I was a little skeptic because it didn't seem realistic. But watching her hunt and her golden eyes proved me wrong. I agreed to go with her and two years later, we showed up on the Cullen's doorstep and have been with them since." I finished.

I kept my gaze down and off her face, not wanting to see the revulsion and disgust in her expression. I was just waiting for her to run screaming and telling me that she didn't want to be with me anymore and to never speak to her again.

"Jasper?" Silence. "Baby, look at me. Please?" She begged.

Sighing, I hesitantly looked up at her and what I saw shocked me. She was radiating pride, adoration, and…love? It was written all over her face as well as her emotions.

"How?" I asked amazed.

"You didn't know any better, Jasper. You were forced into your transformation by someone who fed you lies and used you for her own needs. You didn't know she was lying to you and that there was another way to live. Your strength amazes me and the fact that you overcame all that and ended up being the man you are today fills me with pride that I have you as my mate." I expressed sincerely with so much love and devotion in her eyes.

I crushed my lips to hers and opened the flood gates to my emotions, letting her feel how happy, amazed, grateful, and in love I am with her. Yes, I said it. _Love._ **I love Lillian McLean.**

She pulled back and looked at me with wide eyes. "Is that how you feel about me?"

"Yes." I nodded with a smile. "I love you, Lilly."

A heartbreakingly beautiful smile lit up her face. "I love you too, Jasper. I have since the first time I saw you. It just scared me at how fast everything happened. Until I met you, I didn't believe in love at first sight."

My eyes filled with venom. I have never had someone love me so completely before. It was such a fulfilling feeling. I slowly leaned in and placed a chaste kiss on her lips.

"Thank you for everything. I've never had someone accept all of me before and love me for who I am. You are truly my other half in every way." I told her with my forehead against hers.

She smiled and pecked my lips again. "I will always accept you. Never be afraid to tell me _anything._ I could never judge you."

"I know that now." I grinned.

"Speaking of which, you promised you would tell me what it means to be mates?" She asked.

"Yes. I will do that now." I said. "You said you felt that pain in your chest when we were apart?" She nodded. "That is the mating pull. If you follow it, it will always lead you me. You will always be able to tell if the other is in trouble, upset, and content. A vampire has ways of comforting them if they are distressed. Purring is one way of doing that. It also is a sign that they are content and happy. We only purr for our mates.

"Also, like I said in class, until we complete our mating and mark each other with a bite mark on the other's neck, we are very temperamental when it comes to others around our mate. We will always have the dire need to constantly be touching each other and in the other's presence. We are very possessive of our mates. If one of the mates dies, the other is never far behind. Once we find our other half, it is impossible to live without them. The surviving mate always extracts revenge before taking their own life. That is why it is imperative to make sure that both mates are destroyed if you kill one. Do you understand all this?" I asked.

"Yes. It's a lot to take in, but I understand." She said. "What are we going to do when I need to go home though? I can't bear the thought of not being near you."

"Well, since it would be too early in your parent's eyes to move in together, I can sneak in your room with you every night. Then, after a few months, we can have you come live with me. You're 18 and graduate in June. That's only a little over 6 months away." I suggested.

"That sounds perfect." She smiled excitedly. "In the meantime, I know John and Anna won't mind me staying the night often and on the weekends. They are never home anyways and would probably prefer I be with someone. I know that once you meet them, they will love you. How does tomorrow night sound?"

"Wonderful." I grinned.

For the rest of the night, Lilly and I talked about any and everything. We also spent some time with the rest of the family who were home. Edward and Lilly seemed to be becoming close rather quickly. They played music and sang together. I hadn't seen Edward smile this much in so long. They radiated familial love towards one another. Their bond was already stronger than his and Alice's. Out of everyone in the family, they had the closest familial bond. It was all rather shocking to see the ever brooding Edward in such high spirits.

Esme enjoyed having a blast getting to know Lilly and she loved having another daughter. Lilly really seemed to look up to her as a mother figure and it made Esme's heart swell.

Emmett loved having a new little sister. She would play video games with him and he was immensely enjoying it since none of the other females in the family would play with him. Both my brother's truly loved her as if she was their sister by blood.

Rose surprised me the most. She _never_ takes to anyone this quickly and with so much love an understanding. They acted like they had been sisters since the day they were born and they loved to talk cars together. Lilly's vast knowledge on so many of our favorite topic's shocked us all. Especially for how long she has been living.

Carlisle was able to spend some time with her before he left for work. He was extremely interested in her ability to be so human and the fact that she could eat and sleep astounded us all. He asked her a lot about herself and her gift. He was in his glory soaking up all the knowledge he could about Lilly. He claimed that the more he knew about her, the more likely he would be able to find correct information on her.

Alice loved Lilly and the fact that she knew all about the latest styles and name brands of clothing and accessories. She was a little bummed out that she wouldn't be her life size Barbie Doll, but quickly got over it when she realized Lilly's extensive knowledge on her favorite topics.

Pretty soon, the sun was up and it was time to get ready for school. Lilly borrowed an outfit from Rose and when she came down, she yet again took my breath away. I couldn't get over the fact that this smart, amazing, sweet, beautiful creature was mine. It completely blew me away.

We all piled into our selective cars; Emmett and Rose in her BMW, Alice and Edward in his Volvo, and Lilly and I in my Viper. We made small talk on the way to school about the Civil War and what it was like to live through it. Lilly was glowing and so happy as she learned about the facts that were true and which were false. I promised her that we could read together and that I would point out the true and false facts in all the historical events that took place during my existence. I was shocked that she asked to join me. The rest of the family always thought it was a very odd hobby. I suppose it is, but the fact that my Lilly doesn't think so and is actually interested in joining me filled me with joy. God, I love her.

**(Lilly's POV)**

We turned into the school parking lot, one car after the other; Rose's BMW first, then Jasper's Viper, the Edward's Volvo. We spotted three open parking spots next to each other since we were early today. It was frightfully cold outside and they were calling for snow later this morning.

Jasper opened his door, getting out of the car as I got my books together and into my bag. He ran at a human speed around the car to my door and opened it for me before I had the chance to even reach for the handle. I looked up at him as he smirked, giving me a wink as he held his hand out for me to take as he helped me out of the car. Not letting go of his hand, I smiled in return and he leaned in to give me a chaste kiss on the lips.

"I'm glad you stayed over last night. I had a lot of fun getting to know you. Can I convince you to stay over again?" He asked.

"Um, I don't know. I should probably stay home, especially since you're supposed to meet my parents tonight. But you are more than welcome to stay over with me." I smiled.

"Sounds good." He answered, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear. "I look forward to it."

"As long as you don't mind if I sleep for a few hours. I need to keep my energy up."

"Of course not. I would love to hold you while you sleep." He told me. I blushed a bit and he laughed, stroking my cheek where my blush was the most potent.

"Yeah Jazzman! Gonna get some!" Emmett whistled. Rose smacked the back of his head, giving him a condescending glare. "Owe! Damn, Rosie! What was that for?"

"For being an idiot!" She answered as if it was the most obvious answer. I shook my head at their antics as with a small smile as Jasper glared at his big mouth sibling.

Would they make love tonight? Was she ready for it? Did she love him? _Yes_, she did. She loved him more than she ever thought she could love anybody and the fact that it happened in such a short amount of time scared her a bit.

She stayed quiet while the rest of them chatted nonchalantly as Jasper held her in his arms, rubbing his hands soothingly over her forearm and stomach. Everyone was staring and whispering about herself and the Cullen's. I guess the fact that Jasper had a girlfriend was a big deal to them.

Bella's large and loud Chevy pulled into the parking lot then turned into a parking spot across the lot. I watched as she gathered her books, then jumped out and smiled when her eyes connected with mine. I smiled in return, then pried myself out of Jasper's reluctant arms and walked towards Bella.

I could feel eyes on me as I approached her. I could hear Edward arguing with Alice, who wanted to come with me to talk to Bella. Unfortunately for her, he stuck his ground, not letting her go.

"Hi, Bella!" I smiled.

"Hey, Lilly. How was your night with Jasper?" She asked.

"It was great. I got to know him and the family very well. I really love them all." I said wistfully.

"Really? That's great. I'm happy for you." She gave me a small smile. "I see Edward's back." She nodded over my shoulder at him.

"Yeah, he was visiting family of theirs." I covered for him.

"Oh." She answered.

Just then the warning bell rang, alerting us that we had ten minutes to get to class before we were considered late. We made small talk as we made our way towards the double doors where the English and History building was. Jasper intercepted us before we made it and grabbed my hand, giving Bella a small nod in greeting. I could hear him take a breath before he stopped breathing until Bella separated from us, moving on towards her English class while we went to History.

"I'm so sorry that you're having a hard time. If you want, we can leave for a while to hunt?" I asked him when I noticed that his eyes were quite dark.

"No, it's okay. I'll be fine." He said. I could tell it was a lie and that he was trying to stay strong as to not appear weak. The thing is, I don't mind that he needs to hunt more than the others and take extra precautions. He's still the strongest man I've ever known. I nodded my head, giving him a small smile before we entered the class room.

The day passed quickly and I could tell that Jasper was having more and more trouble with his thirst. We were currently standing around our table in the canteen, making small talk before we went to get our lunches. I heard Alice gasp, and then grab my arm. I noticed that Edward had a worried look on his face as he watched Alice's vision with her.

She came out of her vision, just as the doors to the canteen opened and Bella walked in with Angela Webber and Jessica Stanley.

"Lilly, you have to get Jasper out of here before Bella walks by." She whispered frantically at vampire speed. "Right when she gets close, someone is going to open the doors, sending a gust of wind that carries her scent right for us. He then lunges at Bella, exposing us while killing her!"

I nodded and then grabbed Jasper's hand, dragging him to the doors closest to us. Right when we got to the set of double doors, a large gust of wind brought Bella's sweet scent right towards us. Jasper tensed, his eyes turning a dangerous black color. I tightened my grip on his hand and yanked him out the door and into the fresh air. If I was a human, I would never have been able to get him out of there like I did. He was locked in place and it was obvious that he was afraid that if he moved on his own accord, it would be to lung at Bella. I knew I wouldn't let that happen, even if I had to use my gift on him. If I did, we probably could have stayed in the canteen with the others, but that wouldn't help his thirst. If anything, it would be torturous to have him forced to sit there with that burn in his throat with how bad it was.

I pulled him towards the forest and he went willingly, obviously needing the hunt. I followed him as we ran through the woods, but made sure to stay far enough away so that I didn't interrupt his hunt. He must have found something that appealed to him, because he veered right, picking up speed. I could smell whatever it was. Its scent was earthy and it's heartbeat was getting louder. A herd of deer came into view and I watched in amazement as Jasper lunged, landing on the back of a large buck, breaking his neck, and then latching on.

I stopped about fifteen feet away from him. His eyes were on me as he took pull after pull of the buck's blood. It was so erotic, watching him hunt and feed. I could feel my eyes darkening at the sight.

He finished with the animal, leaving it at his feet. He had a primal look in his eyes as he watched me. He began to approach me slowly but with large steps. He smirked as he felt my lust and desire begin to rise. Finally, we were face to face. He slammed his lips against mine in a fevered kiss. His tongue licked my bottom lip and I immediately granted him access. The kiss was hard and demanding. I was backed up against the nearest tree as he held onto me as if I was going to disappear.

After several minutes, he slowly pulled back and looked at me with such passion, adoration, and joy.

"Lilly, I know we haven't known each other very long, but I can't help how I feel and I won't apologize for it." Jasper said quietly.

"I would never ask you to." I told him honestly.

He looked at me, cupping my cheek. "I love you, Lilly."

I smiled a large and ecstatic smile, and then sent him everything I felt for him. Desire, Lust, adoration, happiness, pride and love. Lots and lots of love.

He gasped. "Is that how you feel towards me? Really?" He asked, his voice filled with hope.

"Yes." I nodded. "I love you too, Jay."

He smiled a heartbreakingly gorgeous smile, then slowly leaned down to kiss me again.

**A/N:**** So, how did you like it? If you have any questions or comments, feel free to put them in my reviews for this chapter and I will answer them in my next Author's Note.**

**If you like this story, check out some of my other stories on my profile!**

'The Major'  
>'Twilight ReVAMPed'<br>'Attempting to Covet'  
>'Pretexting'<br>'Perplexing Revelations'  
>'Far Fetched Realities'<br>'Other Worldly Beauty'  
>'Mirror Image'<span> **NEW!**

_I am also accepting Twilight stories to Beta. I will accept any Jasper/any female lead or Bella/selected female leads. PM me if you need any details.  
>Bella'Xo<em>


	10. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer. ****All publicly recognizable characters, settings etc., are the property of their respective owners. The original characters, ideas and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended. I only do this for fun. –B**

**Chapter 7  
><strong>**(Lilly's POV)**

After our make-out session in the woods, I watched Jasper hunt some more until he got his fill. I felt horrible if the reason he hadn't been hunting enough was because of me. We are very reluctant to leave each other's sides and the mating bond doesn't help to situation any.

He finished up his last doe for the day and after he buried it, he came up to me and wrapped me in his arms.

"Thank you." He murmured into my neck.

"Any time, _mon cher_** (My Dear)**. Anytime." I answered, placing a gentle kiss on his pulse point.

He pulled back and looked at me surprised. "You speak French?"

"Fluently." I nodded. "What about you?"

"I am fluent in many languages. Spanish, French, Portuguese, Italian, Russian, and Egyptian." He listed off.

"Wow." I was impressed. Then again, he has had over a century and a half to learn all that. "I am can only speak French because I grew up in Canada, Italian because I've been there multiple times for various reasons and figured that it would be useful to be able to speak to the locals, and I am pretty good at Spanish, but not perfect."

"Well, you have forever to learn." He smirked.

I looked at my watch, noticing that it is half way through last period. I sighed in exasperation, knowing that we should begin to make our way back to the school's parking lot.

"We should start heading back. School will be out in a half hour." I informed him.

He groaned but took my hand and began to walk at a human pace towards the school.

As we walked, I began to wonder how Edward faired with Bella in Biology. I was sure if something happened that we would have gotten a phone call or something. So I was fairly hopeful.

I also went back to thinking about possibly incorporating the Cullen's diet into my own. Perhaps begin to hunt animals, then once a month, hunt a criminal to keep up my strength and my gift. This way I could hunt with Jasper and he wouldn't miss any more hunts because of me.

"What's wrong?" He asked out of the blue.

"Nothing." I shook my head and gave him a small smile.

"Can't fool an empath, darlin'." He reminded me, sending that sexy smirk of his in my direction before becoming serious again. "Please, tell me?" He begged.

I sighed, then stopped and grabbed his other hand in mine as we faced each other.

"I don't want to be the cause for you missing your hunts." He went to interrupt, but I placed a hand over his mouth stopping any words from coming out. He rose an eyebrow at me in question, but I just shook my head warning him not to interrupt. I slowly removed my hand from his mouth and when I knew he wasn't going to speak, I continued. "I know that instead of hunting when you are supposed to, you have been spending time with me."

"No, I-"

"You know it's true." I challenged him.

He gave a long sigh, then looked down to our connected hands, bringing them together and idly running his thumbs across my knuckles.

"It took me so long to finally find you, Lil. Now that I have…I don't want to be away from you." He looked up at me with venom filled eyes. "I couldn't bear it. It hurts to even think about."

"Shhh…" I dropped one of his hands and cupped his jaw and ran my thumb across his cheek bone. "I feel the same, but you can't neglect your needs because of it."

He closed his eyes and slowly nodded.

"Now that being said, I have a solution so that we don't have to have a repeat of today." He looked down at our feet, radiating waves of shame and self-loathing. "No, _mon amour_** (My love)**…it's not your fault."

"How is it not my fault? I almost killed your best friend! An innocent girl! Not only that, but I almost exposed us all! If it wasn't for you getting me out of there when you did, she would be dead and the Volturi would have been brought down on us!" He took a deep unneeded breath and brought his rant down from yelling to speaking in his regular tone. "I'm the weakest out of the family. I've slipped more times than everyone combined. No matter how hard I try, I'm just no good at this diet." He closed his eyes in concentration. "I can't tell you how many times a day I think about killing somebody and drinking human blood." He opened his eyes and looked straight at me with a tortured expression. "I'm a monster."

"No, you're _not!_" My anger boiled over. "None of this was your fault, Jay! Don't you get it?"

He shook his head. "Get what?"

"You're an empath, Jay. And going by what happened today, an empath who hadn't hunted recently on a diet that doesn't keep your thirst sated as long as human blood does." I gripped the top of his arms as I went on to explain when I saw his puzzled expression. "Your gift is both a blessing and a curse. Blood lust _**is**_ an emotion. One that only vampires feel, but an emotion no less."

A light bulb seemed to have gone off in his head, so I continued.

"I will admit, Bella has one hell of a sweet scent. When those doors opened and that gust of wind blew her scent straight for the six of us, each of our throats began to flare up. You felt not only your own blood lust, but mine, Rose's, Emmett's, Alice's and _Edward's._ I'm surprised you didn't turn into a feral mess until your thirst was sated. Bella is Edward's _singer._"

He remained stock still with his eyes wide and in shock.

"I'm proud of you. I guarantee that if anyone else was in your place, they wouldn't have had the control you did." I paused, smiling a small proud smile at him, making sure to send him all of my emotions so he knew I meant what I said. "You deal with the thirsts of all of us every single day at school, surrounded by hundreds of humans. You are most certainly _**not**_ the weakest link." I reached up to touch his cheek with the back of my hand. "You're the strongest."

In a fraction of a second, his lips were on mine, moving against them in a passionate, grateful, and loving kiss. I could feel him shaking in silent sobs as he pulled back and tucked his head into the crook of my neck. I cooed and shushed him as I attempted to sooth him. I could tell that these were tears of relief and happiness of finally realizing that he is so much more than he believed himself to be and I was glad to be the one to help him figure this out.

After several minutes, he pulled back and gave me a soft kiss on my lips and a grateful smile.

"Thank you so much, darlin'." He said. "I can't believe it took this long for someone to figure this out. I didn't even think of the possibility."

I returned his smile. "You would have figured it out eventually."

"Who knows?" He shrugged. "But it still doesn't help with my predicament."

"Well, that was something I wanted to also talk to you about." I said as we began to walk towards the school again. He looked at me expectantly. "Is there a way for you to be able to block out other's emotions?"

He ran a hand through his hair. "I used to be able to when I fed on humans since my gift was stronger. It wouldn't fully mute their emotions, but it would dull them significantly. Not to mention, I didn't crave blood as often when I was on the human blood diet." He sighed. "But I can't feed on innocents again. It drove me into a depression that took me forever to get out of."

"I understand. I would never want you to be depressed." I said. "What if I start feeding off of animals with you? Then you wouldn't have to be worried about being away from me and you could make sure you are well fed."

He pulled us to a stop and looked at me with a stunned expression on his face. "You would do that for me?"

I wrapped my arms around his neck. "I would do _anything_ for you." I kissed him chastely on his lips and gave him a small smile before tugging him along again.

"But what about your gift? A gift like that needs somethin' stronger than animal blood?" He asked.

"Yeah, that's why I decided that once a month, I would hunt a criminal like normal. That way I can keep up my strength and gift." I explained

He smiled and nodded. "That's a great idea, Lil." He praised. "As a matter of fact, I think I might do the same thing."

"Really?" I asked with my eyebrows up to my hairline. "But what about the depression of killing a human?"

"As long as they aren't innocents, there's no guilt to be had. This way, I can keep my strength and gift strong and I can dull the blood lust around me." He theorized.

"That's a great idea, baby." I squeezed his hand as we broke through the tree line.

"When are you huntin' next?" He asked.

"Well, I was going to go to Seattle this weekend on Saturday night after I get back from La Push. Your invited, of course." I winked.

He frowned.

"What is it?" I asked as we made it to the Viper and leaned against the back bumper.

"I can't go to La Push. None of us can." He sighed, wrapping an arm around my waist. "Now that I think of it, you shouldn't either."

"Why?" I asked, searching his eyes for the answer. He was obviously worried about me going.

"Wolves."

"Wolves?" I raised an eyebrow. He nodded. "You do know that you eat animals, right?"

He chuckled, shaking his head.

"Not those kind of wolves." He clarified. "Horse sized wolves known as shape shifters."

I felt my jaw drop and my eyes widen. "I-I don't understand."

"About 70 years ago, before Alice and I joined the family, the Cullen's were living here and hunting in the forest. A pack of shape shifters appeared and had every intent to try to kill Carlisle and his family. You see, the wolves are called 'spirit wolves' or 'the protectors.' They hunt and kill any human drinking vampires that cross onto their territory which is the Reservation, or La Push area. Carlisle managed to convince them that they were something different. That they didn't feed on humans, but animals. Seeing their golden eyes, they believed them and struck up a treaty. It states that they will not bite a human or cross on to their lands.

"The wolves eventually stopped phasing and we thought that the gene had died with Epirham Black and his pack. We came back, and had a meeting with the Elder's to introduce Alice and I to their family and to sign the treaty. There was a man named Sam Uley there and as soon as we came into his line of sight, he phased into a big black wolf. We asked if there was a new pack and if there was, we deserved to know. They said that Sam was the only one as of right then, but they believed that more would follow and that two were already beginning to catch the fever." Jasper explained.

"Wow." I paused, thinking about everything he told me. I looked up at him. "Do I need to sign this treaty? Would they even know I am part vampire?"

"Yes, they would know. We have a very sweet scent to them and their scent is like a woodsy, wet dog smell to us." He made a face, remembering their scent. "And we probably should add you to the treaty and show you the boundary lines. I will have Carlisle call a meeting with the Elder's before your first animal hunt, but until then, don't go anywhere near the Reservation or the La Push border." He stressed.

"Okay, I won't." I smiled reassuringly and just then, the school bell rang, dismissing the students from their last period classes.

I watched eagerly, waiting to see Bella or Edward. I had every bit of faith in him that he could do this and that Bella would be just fine.

It was then that Bella appeared at the front of the school with Jessica Stanley and Angela Webber. I could hear from here that Jessica was questioning her on her conversation with Edward during Biology, while Angela stayed quiet and listened. I shook my head in exasperation at the gossip queen and her badgering. Bella gave vague and cryptic answers, making Jessica frustrated and attempt to pry more. I decided to save her and began to make my way towards the trio.

"Hey Bella." I greeted, looping my arm through hers. "Angela, Jess." I nodded in their direction, giving only Angela a warm smile. She really did have a kind heart from what I've seen so far.

"Hi Lilly." She gave me a grateful smile. "I'll talk to you guys later." She waved them off and we began walking towards her truck.

"Ugh, thank you so much. She was driving me insane!" She sighed.

"I could tell." I giggled, shaking my head.

"So," She got serious. "What was that at lunch today?"

I thought of a quick but feasible excuse. "Jasper wasn't feeling too good, so I took him to the nurse and we spent the rest of the day in his car."

She looked at me skeptically before nodding. I didn't know whether she bought it or not, but it was enough to keep her from asking any more questions.

I felt arms wrap around me from behind, then lips I immediately identified as Jasper's kiss my neck.

"Hey Darlin'. Where do you think your goin?" He asked teasingly.

I giggled as he continued to give me quick butterfly kisses up and down my neck, tickling me into hysterics. Bella watched us with a small smile, but there was something in her eyes almost studying us. She shook her head and smiled to herself as if to shake any obtuse thoughts from her mind.

Jasper must have felt her emotions fluctuate because he looked up and nodded to her a greeting.

"Bella."

"Hi Jasper." She blushed. "Are you feeling better?"

Jasper looked down at me briefly and I sent him a burst of reassurance. He smiled and looked back up to Bella.

"Much. Lilly has a way about her that can cure anything about me." He bent down and gave me a chaste kiss.

"I'm glad to hear it." She smiled and then turned to me. "Are you driving home with me today or are you going with Jasper?" She asked as she put her books inside the cab of her truck.

"Yes, I'm coming with you." I answered. Jasper gave me a panicked look, searching my eyes uncertainly. "You mentioned having to go home to shower before meeting my parents. Did you forget?"

"No," He shook his head and sighed. "I just figured that you would be coming with me is all."

He looked so upset at the prospect of leaving me and I couldn't blame him. It hurt to think about being apart from him for even this short amount of time. I cupped his face with my hands and kissed his lips and looked him in the eyes.

"How about you run to your house, grab clothes, then come to my house to shower and you can just hang out until my parents get home so you can meet them?" I proposed.

He gave me a crooked grin and nodded.

"Yeah, that's better."

"Ok, so I'll see you soon?" I dropped one of my hands from his face and took his hand, rubbing his knuckles in a calming way. I know I was getting a feeling in the pit of my stomach, being separated from him for the first time since we got together.

"Yeah," He sighed. "I love you."

"I love you too, _mon amour _**(My love)**." I kissed his lips, then pulled back to look at him. "Bye baby."

"See ya soon, darlin'." He gave me a small smile before heading in the direction of his car.

**A/N:**** So, what did you think? Review and let me know! If you have any questions or comments, post them in my reviews and I will respond in my next Author's Note! **

_I am currently accepting Twilight stories to Beta. I will take any stories involving Jasper/any female leads or Bella/selective male leads. I may make exceptions. PM me for details!_

**If you like this story, you'll love some of the other's I have on my page!**

'The Major'  
>'Pretexting'<br>'Mirror Image'** NEW!  
><strong>'Perplexing Revelations'  
>'Attempting to Covet'<br>'Other Worldly Beauty'  
>'Far Fetched Realities'<span>

**Thank you for reading! I hope you have been enjoying everything I've written!**

_Bella'Xo  
>Xo BellaItalia oX<em>


	11. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer. ****All publicly recognizable characters, settings etc., are the property of their respective owners. The original characters, ideas and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended. I only do this for fun. –B**

**Chapter 8  
><strong>**(Lilly's POV)**

"So," I looked at her out of the corner of my eye. "Did you talk to Edward is biology?" I asked her as we drove home in her large Chevy truck.

She didn't answer right away and I watched as her cheeks lit up with her signature blush. "Yeah," She said with a smile. "He apologized for the way he had acted when he met me and then attempted to get to know me by asking me questions about my family, you, and how I liked Forks so far." She paused. "Although…"

"What?" I prodded.

She looked at me briefly before looking back at the road, then did it again and pursed her lips. "There is something…off about him."

"What do you mean?" I pressed, trying to get what she thought she might know out of her head. I knew that if they were to have an honest relationship and planned to stay together, then she would have to learn the truth at some point, but I however was not going to be the one to deliver that blow. I was afraid that if she knew the truth, she would never speak to me again. I am hoping to have her get to know me and the Cullen's further before learning of what we were. Maybe then it won't matter as much to her and we can still salvage our friendship.

"He seemed very…I don't know…almost frustrated. Like he expected to already know the answer before I spoke it and when it didn't come to him, he would press the matter further with more questions. When I asked him about it, he said that he was trying to 'figure me out' and that I was 'very hard to read.' I found it weird, because people usually call me an open book. And his eyes! I swear that they were almost black the last time I saw him. Today, they were like a golden/topaz color. I asked if he had gotten contacts, but he just shook his head and blamed them on the fluorescent lighting before rushing off without so much as a word." She rushed out her explanation. "I mean, that's weird, right?" She looked at me for my reaction.

"Yeah," I shrugged. "Weird."

"Not only that, but he keeps looking at me so intensely." She wrinkled her eyebrows together in concentration. "I don't know what to make of him."

"Maybe he just likes you and is nervous. I mean, Jess did say that he hasn't dated anyone at the school since him and his family arrived." I tried to explain.

"Maybe." She nodded. "But she said the same thing about Jasper and look at you two. Or was he the same way as Edward is?"

"No, he was more forward with what he wanted." I answered. She frowned, so I quickly gave a reason for his forwardness. "But that's probably because he's older. He might have had a girlfriend at his old school."

"I guess you're right." She said, seemingly satisfied with my reasoning. "But have you noticed anything…different about him or his family?"

"Like what?" I asked straightening in my seat.

"Like when we sat with them at lunch yesterday. Did you notice that none of them really ate anything? I mean, sure their food was gone when they threw out their trays, but I didn't see any of them take a single bite! Or how Alice seemed to zone out in the middle of the conversation we were having? Things like that."

Shit. She is more perceptive than I thought. I decided that instead of dismissing her observations, I would back them up. Otherwise, I was afraid she wouldn't talk to me about this stuff and I figured that it would probably be important to find out exactly how much she knew. Plus, I didn't want her to think she couldn't talk to me about things on her mind. She was my best friend and I would like to return the courtesy for how nice and accepting she was of me.

"Yeah, I noticed." I mumbled.

She snapped her head in my direction. "Why didn't you say anything?"

I shrugged. "I thought I was going crazy and being ridiculous. Now that you saw the same things I did, I see that the notion isn't me at all."

She smiled at me. "You're definitely not crazy."

"Thanks."

She reached over and grabbed one of my hands that I had placed in my lap, giving me a reassuring squeeze. She flinched and looked over at me in shock.

"Oh my gosh, your hands are freezing! If you were cold, why didn't you tell me?" She immediately began to turn the heat in the cab up.

"Thanks. I have a blood circulation problem, so I'm always cold. I just didn't want to roast you out of your truck." I giggled.

Bella laughed with me, shaking her head. "It's not a problem. If I get hot, I'll just roll down my window a bit."

We continued to make small talk until we made it to her house. She parked her car in her driveway, then turned to me and gave me a small smile.

"Hey Lilly, I'm really glad we became friends. You're the only one I met so far that I feel like I can really talk to and isn't just friends with me because I'm new and want the popularity points. Then again, you're new too, but still. I really appreciate it." She said as I put my gloves and hat back on.

I reached over and took her hand in mine, pulling it on to my lap and held it between both of my hands.

"It's my pleasure. I know exactly what you mean on both of those aspects and feel the same way. I've been used by a lot of petty people who only want to get to know me because they think I'm pretty or because of my music career." I said returning her smile.

"Music career?" Her eyebrows rose towards her hairline in surprise.

"Uh, yeah." I blushed and nervously began to shift in my seat. "Back in Vancouver, I began to dabble with music just for fun. I ended up singing in a small club during an open mic night and got discovered by a pretty popular recording artist. I wasn't looking for fame or to go anywhere with it, but agreed to record an album to sell. It became pretty popular around Canada and a good portion of the US. I said that I wasn't looking to make a big deal about it for the time being and wanted to finish school and go to college, but any time that I was feeling musical, I would record and let them sell it."

Bella's jaw was hanging down in surprise. "Wow." Then, a look of recognition crossed her features. "Wait a minute!" She shuffled through her book of CD's she had behind the seat, then pushed in the cassette tape that had a cord connected to it that plugged into a portable CD player. She pulled the CD she was looking for out of the book and placed it in the open CD player, closing it and pressed play.

Music began to play before my voice sounded through the speakers in the cab. A smile lit up my face at hearing my favorite song that I recorded on the album.

"This is you!" Bella exclaimed.

"Yeah," I laughed. "This is my favorite song that I recorded."

"It's mine too!"

"Well, I'm glad you like it." I grinned at her.

We sang along to the song until it ended and then Bella turned off the CD. We sat in silence for a few moments before she broke it by clearing her throat.

"You know, back in Phoenix, I didn't really have any friends. I wasn't the kind of girl that guys asked on dates or the girl who anyone looked up to or invited to their parties or sleepovers. I mainly kept to myself throughout the day and when I got home, I would cook dinner for my Mom, pay any bills that were due, and finish any homework I didn't get done in study hall or during lunch. I pretty much played the parent to my harebrained mother. Don't get me wrong, I love her with all my heart, but she was more like the kid than my mom. She was my best and only friend." She looked up at me from her hands that were placed together in her lap. "I really appreciate your friendship, Lilly. Promise me we will always be best friends?"

"I promise." I reached over and enveloped her in my arms, hugging her to my body. "You're the best friend I've ever had."

"Me too." She whispered, and then pulled back with a small smile. "You better get going. Jasper should be over any minute now."

I looked at my watch on my left wrist and noticed that it was now almost three thirty.

"Yeah, you're right." I nodded, and then looked up at her as I gathered my books. "You know, you're welcome to come over any time. You don't even have to knock. Just come right in. The door is always unlocked, except after my parents get home. Drop by whenever."

"Okay, thanks. You too." She told me, then pulled the handle on her door and stepped out of the car into the freezing cold March air.

By the time I made it across the street, Jasper was just pulling up in front of my house. I opened the front door, setting my bag inside and turned to watch as Jasper pulled an overnight bag out of his back seat. He slung it over his shoulder and stopped as he looked up and me and gave me a wide smile before resuming his approach.

I met him half way and wrapped my arms around his neck, smiling up at him before catching his lips with me in a heated kiss. Though we have only been away from each other for less than an hour, it felt as though it had been much longer.

"I missed you." He whispered as he rubbed his nose against mine in an Eskimo kiss.

"I missed you, too." I whispered back giggling.

He pecked my lips again before taking my hands from around his neck and bringing them down in front of us, releasing one hand and dragging me back towards the open front door.

Once we were in, I flicked my wrist, closing the front door and making my book bag levitate off the ground, following us up to my bedroom.

"Just put your bag on the other side of my bed." I instructed. "The bathroom is right through there, as well as the linen closet where the towels and wash cloths are unless you prefer a loofa. I have two hanging in the shower." I pointed to the door on the right side of my room; one of the perks of being an only child. I got my own bathroom and this one happened to be in my room. "My closet is through those double doors if you want to keep some clothes here until I can move in with you."

"That sounds wonderful." He grinned. "I brought bottles of my own shampoo, conditioner and body wash that I can keep here as well?"

"Sure! Bring whatever you need or want to keep here." I insisted. I wanted him to feel at home here with me at my house. I knew for a fact that both John and Anne will adore him almost as much as I do.

"Thanks." He leaned in and placed a kiss on my lips, but pulled away before I could deepen it. He smirked at my pout and kissed it once me. "You're so beautiful." He ran his thumb across my cheek. "And as much as I would like nothing more than to continue to kiss you all night, I need to hurry up and shower. Then we can resume kissing and anything else you desire until your parents get home."

"Sounds perfect." I grinned up at him. "While you're washing up, I'm going to get dinner ready so that all we have to do is warm it up later on. This way, after you're out of the shower, I can just spend time kissing you until John and Anne arrives."

His smile widened at what I was suggesting and I could feel his gift leaking happiness, excitement, and love.

He flit into the bathroom, but then appeared in front of me once again and gave me a peck on the lips before disappearing into the bathroom once again.

I chuckled to myself at his silliness and excitement and made my way down the stairs and into the kitchen.

I stood in the middle of the room, making sure I had a good view of everything. I took a deep relaxing breath and concentrated on what I wanted to do. Instantly, everything began to float and move about the room. The chicken and other food I needed levitated and floated out of the fridge, landing on the counter.

I watched everything and using my hands when needed, I instructed and controlled everything with my mind as needed. After several minutes, I was finally finished and the chicken and biscuits were in the oven cooking, as well as the sliced potatoes boiling on the stove, along with the garlic butter sauce on medium, sautéing in a small pan.

I suddenly felt arms wrap around my waist and a kiss placed on my neck. I knew it was Jasper as he used his signature greeting. I smiled and turned my head, placing a kiss on his cheek. He returned my smile, pulling me down onto his lap as he sat at one of the chairs at the kitchen table.

The potatoes were obviously done, so I flicked my wrist and turned off the stove, levitating the sauce pan of boiling water and potatoes to the sink. I drained the water out and then dumped the potatoes in a shallow bowl, then poured the garlic butter sauce onto the hot potatoes and made sure to stir them so all of the potatoes would be covered. I then washed and dried the dirty pans, then put them back in their designated places in the cabinets. Done.

"You're amazing, you know that?" He mumbled in my ear.

I turned my head to look at him and shrugged. "I try."

"You succeed." He corrected me.

"Thank you." I smile at him and peck his lips. "Let's go watch a movie." I suggest. "The chicken won't be done for another two hours."

"Sounds good." He said as he picked me up bridal style. He laughed at my squeak and next thing I know, I am sitting sideways in his lap with my back against the arm of the couch in the living room with the television on. "Though, I doubt I will be paying much attention to the movie." He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively.

"Slow down Casanova." I chuckle. "There will be none of 'that.'" I wiggled my eyebrows mimicking his gesture. I knew he was only joking and I decided to play along but at the same time let him know that it is something I am looking forward to in the future. "I would prefer our first time not be rushed or on my parent's couch. I want us to take our time and have hours and hours to worship each other's bodies."

"You're right." He nodded. "You deserve so much more than that."

He kissed me chastely and brought his hand behind my neck, playing with the hairs at the nape of my neck. God, I loved this man and I would spend the rest of eternity showing him exactly how much.

**A/N:**** So what did you guys think of Lilly and Bella's talk? She is beginning notice that something is different about the Cullen's, but she hasn't quite noticed anything about Lilly yet. I wanted their friendship to be a strong one. Not only that, but Lilly seems to have a quality about her that draws people and creatures to her. They can't help but adore her. You will find out why that is in later chapters. **

**If you have any questions or comments, post them in the reviews and I will respond in my next Author's Note.**

_I am currently accepting Twilight stories to beta. I will accept any story about Jasper/any female lead or Bella/selected male leads. I will also make exceptions for other stories depending on the plot and the characters. PM me for any further details or if you would like me to beta for you!_

**If you like this story, check of the other stories listed on my FanFiction page!**

'The Major'  
>'Pretexting'<br>'Perplexing Revelations'  
>'Attempting to Covet'<br>'Twilight ReVAMPed'  
>'Far Fetched Realities'<br>'Other Worldly Beauty'  
>'Mirror Image'<span>** NEW!**

_Thank you for reading my stories and I hope you enjoy everything that your read!  
>-Bella'Xo<br>__**Xo BellaItalia oX**_


	12. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer. All publicly recognizable characters, settings etc., are the property of their respective owners. The original characters, ideas and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended. I only do this for fun. –B**

**Chapter 9  
><span>(Jasper's POV)**

I let out a contented sigh and pulled Lilly tighter to my body as she lay asleep as we cuddled in her bed. Tonight was Lilly's night where she had to catch a few hours of sleep to keep up her energy for the week. Dinner with her family had gone wonderfully, aside from me actually having to take a few bites while I sneakily hid pieces of my food little by little into the napkin I had in my lap. Lilly actually ate and enjoyed her dinner. She is so lucky that she gets to eat and sleep on occasion.

John and Anne were nice enough people and obviously loved Lilly with all their hearts. They were impressed with my knowledge and grades and were genuinely happy that Lilly and I found each other and they were surprisingly okay with me and Lilly staying the night at each other's houses, saying that Lilly and I were both responsible and trustworthy adults. According to them, all of the other guys that Lilly briefly dated were not up to par with her knowledge or talent and didn't have anything in common with her, whereas we had almost everything in common. We truly were the other halves to each other's souls.

"Mmm…Jasper." Lilly sighed in her sleep. "Love you." I chuckled quietly to myself. So she talked in her sleep! It warmed my heart that even in her subconscious state; she was aware of my presence and was dreaming of me. I smiled to down at her and kissed her temple before closing my eyes and feeding on her lethargic emotions, pushing myself to get as close to sleep as I could.

The next morning, Lilly and I both took turns in the shower as we got ready for school. She had already called Bella and said that she was going to ride with me, but she would see her at school. I could tell that she was happy for Lilly and they cared a great deal about each other. I made me happy that Lilly had a friend, human or not, that was as close as they were. She needed friends outside of my family.

The ride to school was pretty quiet, but to make up for it, we would constantly touch each other, draw patterns on each other, place light kisses on the other's skin, or make noises of content. It was nice that we didn't need to fill the silence with needless chatter and we could just _be._

When we pulled into the parking lot, we saw that my siblings were already there and hanging around by their cars chatting. I picked a spot next to Edward's Volvo and hurried around the car and opened the door for Lilly, who was gathering her thing. I held out my hand for her to take, and as per usual, she took my hand and looked up at me and gave me a small smile of thanks.

"So how was your night, lovebirds?" Emmett smirked. Rosalie wacked him on the back of his head, giving him an annoyed glare. "Ouch, babe! What did I do this time?"

"Prying into their business and being a pervert in the process." She snapped.

Shaking my head at the two of them, I wrapped my arms around Lilly's waist and pulled her against me, tucking my face into her neck and taking in her sweet scent of peaches and lilacs. It calmed me and did things to my body that I didn't know was possible.

Looking up as I heard Bella's truck pulling into the parking lot, I sighed. Lilly looked up at me and by the look in her eyes, I could tell she wanted to go and talk to Bella. It was amazing how we could read each other without having to actually speak. I nodded at her to go and she leaned up, placing a kiss on my cheek, then dashed off almost dancing across the parking lot to where Bella was inspecting the new chains Chief Swan must have put on her tires this morning to help the truck handle better in this weather.

I noticed Edward was watching the girls talk as well. I walked over next to him and leaned on his car with my arms folded over my chest.

"You like her." I observed.

He looked at me with a puzzled expression. "What? Who? Lilly? Yeah, I like her a lot. We have a lot in common and I feel like I can really talk to her about anything and everything. I'm glad you found her. She's good for you and the rest of us."

"Yeah," I nodded with a small smile as I watched her smile as she chatted away with Bella. "I really love her. I don't know what it is about her, but she seems to draw people to her and you can't help but adore her. Then if she decides to let you in, it's like the greatest gift." I paused, then looked over at him. "But I wasn't talking about Lilly."

"Then who?"

"Bella." I nodded in her direction.

"Well, yeah…I guess. She's a nice girl, but not being able to read her frustrates me to no end." He sighed.

"I wasn't talking about as a friend." I chuckled. "You have feelings for her."

"What?" He looked at me in surprise. "No, she's human!"

"You can't lie to an empath, Edward." I arched an eyebrow, challenging him.

"I barely know then girl." He shook his head. "She's-" He stopped and his eyes grew wide. I heard Alice gasp over to the left of us. Edward looked back over to Lilly and Bella with a panicked expression and my senses were on full alert looking for possible danger.

Alice came out of her vision and looked at Edward in shock just as Tyler Crowley's van began to skid across a patch of ice directly towards where Lilly and Bella were standing. I knew with Lilly's tough vampire skin, speed and strength, not to mention her gift to stop the truck, she would be fine. Though, if she didn't see the van coming at them and think to use her gift, she would expose us all by not having a scratch.

Sending everyone around us a cocktail of distracting emotions, I ran at vampire speed across the parking lot and grabbed Lilly and lightly jumped backwards, sending us both falling into the bed of Bella's truck. I tried to grab Bella, but as I did, I grabbed nothing but air. I looked to see where she was and saw that Edward had her on the ground, jutting out his hand and stopping the van before it could reach Bella, then lifting it up slightly off her feet. Fuck!

**(Lilly's POV)**

What the fuck just happened? I remember talking to Bella about asking anyone to the Girl's Choice Dance, when I noticed Tyler's van coming straight towards us. Before I had time to react or attempt to use my gift, I felt Jasper's arms around my waist and then flying backwards into the bed of Bella's truck. SHIT! Bella!

I scrambled to look over the side of the bed, and then breathed a sigh of relief. That is, until I saw Edward's handprint denting the van and him lifting the truck off Bella's legs, making sure that they didn't crush them before setting it back down. Oh, no.

"H-How? How did you do that?" Bella stuttered out as she stared at the side of the van with wide eyes.

Jasper and I looked at each other in panic as all of the students began to swarm around the two cars, screaming, and some crying. I could see the rest of the Cullen's still across the parking lot, looking on in shock while Rose looked on in anger.

"Do what?" Edward asked her, feigning confusion.

"How did…how did you and Jasper get over to us so fast?" She pressed.

"Bella, you hit your head. I think you're confused." He began looking around at the other students, most likely reading their mind to make sure that they didn't see anything. By the relief on his face, I guess no one saw anything, though I wonder how they missed it. He then looked back at Bella who was studying him with a perplexed expression of confusion and concentration. "Let's not talk about this right now."

She didn't say anything at first, just continued to stare at him and the van. "Ok fine. But we _will_ be talking about this."

Edward sighed in exasperation and nodded.

Jasper and I stayed in the bed of the truck and I brought my attention back to him when I felt him running his hands all over my body checking for injuries. He told me that this would happen if he felt I was ever in any type of danger, so I wasn't surprised to find him doing it.

After he was finished with his inspection of my body, he looked up at me with concern evident in his eyes.

"Are you okay, Lil?" He asked.

I nodded. "Just a little shook up, I guess." I shrugged. "I know I wouldn't have gotten hurt, but Bella would have died. It all happened so fast." I paused. "How did no one see you and Edward?" I asked at vampire speed.

"I sent them a cocktail of emotions to distract them." He explained.

"Oh." I gave him a small smile.

Just then, two ambulances pulled up along with a few police cruisers pulled up next to the accident. Jasper and I jumped out of the bed and I felt him pull me into his arms and calm himself with my scent. Some EMT's began to tend to Edward, Bella and Tyler, while another came up to Jasper and I and began to ask us some questions.

"No, we didn't get hit or jostled by anything. We're fine." I smiled at the EMT reassuringly and momentarily dazzled him. Jasper looked at me with narrowed eyes, but the smirk on his face showed that he wasn't mad, just on to me.

"O-Ok, well why don't you two at least come to the hospital and have the doctor's sign you with a clean bill of health. Just in case after the shock and adrenalin wears off, you might feel some pain if you twisted anything falling into the bed of that truck?" He proposed.

"Sure, that will be fine." Jasper answered before I could tell him no.

I shot him a glare, but he just laughed and leaned in to whisper in my ear at vampire speed. "It will give us a chance to find out just how much Bella found out, not to mention we need to at least appear like getting hurt is a possibility."

I sighed in exasperation then nodded, agreeing with his logic.

Jasper and I piled into the ambulance that Bella was in, strapped to a gurney with a neck brace on. We sat on the side, strapped into a pair of seats that the EMT's sometimes use. Edward sat up front with the driver, while Tyler had his own ambulance. I briefly saw Chief Swan talking to Bella as they were wheeling her towards the ambulance and he looked worried. Bella assured him that she was fine that they were just going to take her to get checked out, even though it was pointless.

The ride was quiet aside from the EMT's asking the occasional question while Bella glared at us, obviously aggravated that she had to be strapped in with a neck brace, while Jasper and I just hung out in the seats.

When we got to the hospital, Jasper and I met up with Edward and walked down to Carlisle's office, assuring the EMT's that brought us that we were going to see Dr. Cullen. They recognized Jasper and Edward as Carlisle's kids, so they let us go without a problem.

Edward knocked on the door to his office as Jasper and I stood hand in hand behind him and waited for Carlisle to tell us to come in. We entered at his call as Carlisle looked up at us stunned.

"What are you guys doing here? Is everything okay?" He asked in a worried tone.

"There was an accident at school." Edward went on to explain the situation with Tyler's van and Bella and I, then how him and Jasper were able to get to us, but he is afraid that Bella saw everything.

"What about everyone else?" He questioned.

"No. No one saw us speed across the parking lot." Edward answered. "I listened to everyone's thought's right after it happened and they weren't suspicious of anything; only worried for our safety."

"Yeah, I sent them some distracting emotions to have them not paying attention to what was happening in front of them." Jasper added. "Then afterwards, I felt no suspicious emotions or anything of the sort."

"Good thinking, son." Carlisle praised Jasper. He then looked to me. "And you're okay? The only reason I'm asking is because I haven't found out too much about you and how much your vampire side effects any injuries you could have."

"I'm fine." I assured him. "I was actually hit by a car once in Vancouver after a hunt and I didn't have a scratch on me. Ran me over and everything! It almost seems like there is more vampire than human in me."

He nodded. "I thought as much, but I just had to ask."

I smiled at him in gratitude before he began to exit his office, the three of us following him towards where Bella and Tyler were being held.

"I'll be right there. I just need to get their charts." Carlisle told us.

We entered through the curtain where the two of them were both sitting on separate beds. Bella was lying back with her eyes closed and Tyler was staring into space. He was bleeding and looking much worse than Bella was. I looked to Jasper and saw that his eyes had darkened, but he seemed to be holding his own. He gave me a smile in reassurance, which I returned before he pulled me into his arms and buried his face in my hair, distracting himself from the fresh blood with my scent.

**(Bella's POV)**

"Is she sleeping?" I heard a voice ask. _Edward._

My eyes snapped open and I sat straight up to see Edward leaning against Tyler's gurney and Jasper holding Lilly in his arms with his head tucked into her neck. He must have really been scared for her for him to be holding her the way he is. It melted my heart that he loved her as much as he did.

"Edward, Lilly, Jasper…" Tyler began. Here we go again. I had pretended to sleep because I was getting sick and tired of hearing him constantly try to apologize, no matter how many times I told him it was okay and that it wasn't his fault. "I just want to apologize for what happened back there. I was going too fast around that corner and I began to slide on the ice and I lost control of my car."

"It's okay Tyler." Edward reassured him, just as I had not ten minutes earlier. "It was icy out. There was nothing you could do. I'm just glad you're okay."

"Yeah, me too." Lilly added as Jasper looked up and nodded his agreement with his brother and girlfriend.

"I heard the chief's daughter was here." An amazingly gorgeous doctor came in with my chart.

This must be Dr. Cullen. He looked like a movie star. He had blonde hair that was styled nicely on his head with the same pail skin and golden eyes the rest of the Cullen's had.

"How are you doing, Isabella?" He asked with a smile gracing his features, making my heart stutter.

"I-I'm fine." I swallowed.

"That's good. Now, if you can follow the light with your eyes please?" He asked as he shined a small light into my eyes and began to move it back and forth, making me follow it.

"You know, if it wasn't for Edward and Jasper, Lilly and I would have been crushed. I mean, they got to us so fast." I waited for his reaction after I spoke.

He just gave me a small smile and said, "Well, it sounds like you girls were very lucky, then."

So, he's in on it too. I know I'm not crazy, because Tyler even said that he didn't see either of them anywhere near Lilly and I.

**(Jasper's POV)**

After Chief Swan entered the room, Carlisle, Lilly, Edward and I went back to Carlisle's office. When we started down the hall that his office was on, we saw that Rose, Alice and Emmett were waiting in front of it. Alice was standing there looking through her visions, or at least that's what it looked like, Rosalie was pacing angrily and Emmett was watching her with baited breath, not daring to say a word.

"There you are!" Rose growled as soon as she saw the four of us. "How stupid are you, Edward? You're going to get us exposed and I don't want to move yet! I like it here!"

"What did you expect me to do? Just stand there and let her die?" Edward snarled back.

"This isn't about just you! It's about all of us!" She argued.

"Well why aren't you yelling at Jasper? He did the same thing!" He asked.

"Because Jasper made sure to send out a distraction so that no one saw either of you race across the parking lot. Because Jasper made sure he wasn't seen! Because Jasper _didn't stop a moving truck with his hand or lift a van with his bare hands!_" She said balling up her fists in fury

"What do you want from me Rose? If her blood was spilt in front of me, I would have exposed us anyway, So at least this way I saved her life!" Edward retorted.

"And what if she tells someone what she saw?"

"She won't!" He insisted.

"I think we should take this in my office." Carlisle interrupted clearing his throatand nodding behind us.

We turned and saw Bella pearing at us around the corner.

"Um, can I talk to you?" She asked Edward.

He nodded and walked towards her, but not before recieving a warning glare from Rose first. We all entered Carlisle's office in silence before I broke it.

"We are going to head back home. Everyone else is going back to the school right?" I asked the room.

"Yeah, they won't expect either of you to return, so you will be fine." Alice chirped. "But there will be a family meeting when Carlisle gets you too, Lilly. You're family now."

Lilly gave everyone a shy, but joyful smile as I pulled her from the office.

**(Bella's POV)**

"I think you know what I'm about to talk to you about." I said giving him a pointed look. "How did you get over to me so fast?"

"I was standing right next to you, Bella." He gave me as confused look.

"No." I shook my head. "You were by your car across the lot talking to Jasper."

"I think you're confused. You hit your head." He insisted with a nervous laugh.

"I know what I saw! You stopped the van! You pushed it away with your hand." I shook my head slightly as I searched his eyes for the truth.

"Well nobody's going to believe you." He said suddenly getting angry.

"I wasn't going to tell anybody. I just need to know." I pleaded.

"Can't you just thank me and get over it?" He was obviously not going to tell me the truth right now.

"Thank you." I said. I at least owed him that. He did save my life after all.

He studied me for as moment before speaking. "You're not going to let this go, are you?"

"No."

"Well then, I hope you enjoy disappointments." He said before stalking off in the other direction.

I saw Lilly and Jasper just then leaving Carlisle's office hand in hand,heading for the double dfoors the lead you out of the hospital. I wonder if she knows anything. I'm sure she saw everything and as asked Jasper. Maybe she had better luck than I did finding out wehat the heck is going on with the mysterious Cullen family.

**A/N: So Bella is finally starting to catch on to the Cullen's. But wehat do you think she is going to say when she finds out about Lilly? **

**If you have asny questions or comments, post them in my reviews and I will answer them in my next Author's Notes!**

**I am also still accepting Twilight stories to Beta if thery involve Jasper/any female lead, or Bella/selected male leads. I may make exceptions derpending on the characters and plot. PM me fgor any further details. - Bella'Xo **


	13. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer. ****All publicly recognizable characters, settings etc., are the property of their respective owners. The original characters, ideas and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended. I only do this for fun. –B**

**Chapter 10  
><strong>**(Jasper's POV)**

I walked through the front door with my hand on Lilly's back as I guided her into the house and to the dining room table where our family meeting would be held. It was Thursday and we had already let John and Anne know that Lilly will be staying here for the next two weeks while they went back up to Vancouver to tie up some loose ends and finalize the sale of their old home and visit with her grandparents. There was no way that Lilly and I could be apart that long and not to mention, we both had school. Since she is 18, they give her lots of freedom and trust that they raised her right. They also liked and trusted me a lot.

I hesitated, but went to the side of the table where Rosalie was and pulled Lilly's chair out for her and pushed it in next to Rose's and then pulled my own chair closer to hers and took my seat. I don't think she realized it, but the family was divided on two sides. Rose, Emmett; because he was her mate, and I on one side, Esme, Edward and Alice on the other. If she knew what each side represented, I have no doubt that she would move to the other side. I wanted her near me, so I made sure to seat her next to me.

Lilly and I were the last to arrive, besides Carlisle, because we had to stop at her house on the way back from school to get a bag for her. I reached over and took her hand in both of mine and turned sideways in my seat so I could face her as I began to lightly write secret messages to her on her hand. It was something we came up with to communicate so others couldn't understand us. Our gifts also came into play as I sent her an emotion and she sent me one back. If we were at school, she would control my hand to write out what she wanted to say to me on a piece of paper.

We all stayed silent while we waited for Carlisle to arrive, but under all of the quiet, I could feel emotions coming from everybody. Lilly was nervous about what was to come, Emmett was worried about Rose and the family among other things, Esme was concerned about everything that was happening as she fidgeted in her seat next to Alice. Rosalie was furious as she constantly glared at Edward. If looks could kill, Edward would be nothing but ashes right now. Alice was frustrated, about what, I had no idea. Her eyes were focused on something far away – the future, it must be still too indistinct for her to make use of it. She rubbed her forehead as if she had a headache. Edward was feeling dread about this whole thing. I couldn't blame him. He was about to get the full blunt of Rose's wrath. Me? I was pretty pissed off about the whole ordeal. I had everything under control and distracted, even Bella. I was about to yank her over the bed of the truck to safety, but he had to reveal us to her. I swear if what he did brings the Volturi down on us, heads will roll. I can't risk them finding out about Lil. Her gift and the fact that she is a hybrid will make her something that Aro will try and covet. Not to mention, he has been trying to get me to be the head of his guard since he met me after I joined the Cullen's.

I was decided, regardless of the outcome of this discussion. I would protect Lilly no matter what I had to do and it seemed that there was no other way to fix the mess that Edward had created. His teeth locked together as he read my thoughts.

Finally, we heard Carlisle's car turning onto the driveway. The tension and mixed emotions were about to make me snap. A little over a minute later, his car door was shut and he walked through the front door and took his seat next to Esme at the head of the table. Rose was still glaring at Edward, never looking away. Emmett sat behind her with his face and emotions both wry.

Edward took a deep breath knowing that he should speak first.

"I'm sorry." Edward said breaking the silence and looking first at Rose, then me, Lilly, and then Emmett. "I didn't mean to put any of you at risk. It was thoughtless, and I take full responsibility for my hasty action."

Rosalie glared at him balefully. "What do you mean, 'take full responsibility'? Are you going to fix it?"

"Not the way you mean." He said in an even, but quiet voice. Lilly's eyes widened as she realized what Rose meant by 'fix it' but she kept quiet. The more I thought about it though, the more I thought that Rose had the only plausible course of action. It was law.

"I'm willing to leave now, if that makes things better." Edward offered feeling skeptical and unsure. He was probably warring in his head about leaving the Swan girl and making sure that she is safe from us, namely Rose and I. I knew that Lilly would be upset with my actions, but if it meant that she was safe, then I would suffer the consequences. Edward growled at me as he heard my thoughts, but it was cut off by Esme's outburst.

"No!" She gasped. "No, Edward." She finished with a murmur.

He patted her hand reassuringly. "It's just a few years."

"Esme's right though," Emmett said. "You can't go anywhere now. That would be the opposite of helpful. We have to know what people are thinking, now more than ever."

"Alice will catch anything major." Edward disagreed.

Carlisle shook his head. "I think Emmett is right, Edward. The girl will be more likely to talk if you disappear. It's all of us leave, or none of us."

"You mean all of us, including Lilly." I corrected as I narrowed my eyes in his direction.

"Yes, including Lilly." He nodded.

"But, what about my parents?" Lilly asked alarmed.

"You can still keep in touch with them." I said reassuringly. "You are almost out of High School. We can tell them that you got an early admission to college and you can visit them and email them, as well as talk on the phone."

"That won't be necessary, because she won't say anything!" Edward insisted quickly. I could reel Rose building up to the explosion, and I could tell Edward wanted to put that 'fact' out first.

"You don't know her mind." Carlisle reminded him.

"I know this much. Alice, Lilly, back me up." He pleaded.

Alice stared up at him wearily and Lilly looked like she was about to cry. I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her into my chest, purring for her to calm her, growling in Edward's direction for bringing my mate into this. She was torn at sticking up for Bella and going against me. It wasn't fair that Edward push her like that.

"I can't see what will happen if we just ignore this." Alice said as she glanced at me and Rose.

No, she couldn't see that future - not when Rosalie and I were so decided against ignoring the incident.

Rosalie's palm smacked down on the table with a loud bang, making Lilly flinch in my arms. I tightened my hold on her and began to purr louder.

"We can't allow the human a _chance_ to say anything! Carlisle, you must see that! Even if we decided to all disappear, it's not safe to leave stories behind us. We live so differently from the rest of our kind – you know there are those who would love an excuse to point fingers. We are a very gifted family and you know Aro has wanted Edward, Alice and especially Jasper. Not to mention we have Lilly with us now! A hybrid that was born from a human with an extraordinary ability, the Volturi would love to just take her from us!" Rose yelled and I growled loudly at this, holding her tighter to my chest as she began to shake. Rose paused and looked at me apologetically. No one would take her from me! Lilly brought my face down to her neck so I could calm myself with her scent. I began to take deep breaths and slowly began to relax again.

"See? We have to be more careful than anyone else." Rose finished quieter.

"We've left rumors behind us before." Edward reminded her.

"Just rumors and suspicions, Edward. Not eyewitnesses and evidence!" Rose argued.

"Evidence!" He scoffed.

I was nodding my head with hard eyes. He shouldn't have interfered when I had everything under control without leaving said evidence behind.

"How come it's okay that Jasper was able to fly across the parking lot and get to Lilly, but when I do the same for Bella, I get the third degree?" He asked angrily.

"Jasper didn't leave witnesses or evidence! He distracted everyone for the both of you when he made it across the parking lot and didn't stop a van with his hand in front of a human! He was about to grab Bella and pull her over as well, but you were already there about to stop the van! He is not the one who exposed us to a human, Edward! If he hadn't pulled Lilly out of the way, she would have exposed herself when she didn't get hurt and the Swan girl died. If anything, he saved all of us! You doomed us!"

"Rose –"Carlisle began.

"Let me finish, Carlisle. It doesn't have to be any big production. The girl hit her head today. So, maybe that injury turns out to be more serious than it looked." She shrugged. "Every mortal goes to sleep with the chance of never waking up. The others would expect us to clean up after ourselves. Technically, that would make it Edward's job, but this is obviously beyond him. You know I'm capable of control. I would leave no evidence behind me."

"Yes, Rosalie, we all know how proficient an assassin you are." Edward snarled.

She hissed at him, furious.

"Edward, please." Carlisle said. Then he turned to Rosalie. "Rosalie, I looked the other way in Rochester, because I felt that you were owed your justice. The men you killed had wronged you monstrously. This is not the same situation. The Swan girl is an innocent."

"It's not personal, Carlisle." Rose said through her teeth. "It's to protect us all."

There was a brief moment of silence while Carlisle thought through his answer. When he nodded, Rosalie's eyes lit up. She should have known better. I didn't need Edward's gift to anticipate his next words. Carlisle never compromised.

"I know you mean well, Rosalie, but…I'd like very much for our family to be worth protecting. The occasional…accident or lapse in control, or even the way Lilly and Jasper decided to hunt is a regrettable part of who we are." It was very like him to include himself in the plural, though he had never had such a lapse himself like I did with my many slips. "To murder a blameless child in cold blood is another thing entirely. I believe the risk she presents, whether she speaks her suspicions or not, is nothing to the greater risk. If we make exceptions to protect ourselves, we risk something much more important. We risk losing the essence of who we are." I could tell Edward was trying to control his expression very carefully, but his emotions told it all. It wouldn't do at all to grin. Or to applaud, as I could tell he wanted to.

Rosalie scowled. "It's just being responsible."

"It's being callous." Carlisle corrected gently. "Every life is precious."

Rose sighed heavily and her lower lip pouted out. Emmett patted her shoulder encouragingly.

"It'll be fine, Rose." He said in a low voice.

"The question," Carlisle continued, "is whether we should move on?"

"No," Rosalie moaned. "We just got settled and Lilly moved here not five days ago! I don't want to start on my sophomore year in high school again!"

"You could keep your present age, of course." Carlisle said.

"And have to move again that much sooner?" She countered.

Carlisle shrugged.

"I like it here! There's so little sun, we get to be almost normal."

"Well, we certainly don't have to decide now. We can wait and see if it becomes necessary. Edward seems certain of the Swan girl's silence."

Rosalie snorted.

**(Edward's POV)**

I was no longer worried about Rose. I could see that she would go along with Carlisle's decision, no matter how infuriated she was with me. Their conversation had moved on to unimportant details.

Jasper, however, remained unmoved.

I understood why. Before he met Alice in the diner, he'd lived in a combat zone, a relentless theater of war. He knew the consequences of flouting the rules-he'd seen the grisly aftermath with his own eyes.

It said much that he had not tried to calm Rosalie down with his extra faculties, nor did he now try to rile her up. He was holding himself aloof from this discussion – above it. He only held on to Lilly as if she was his life line and remained quiet and motionless.

"Jasper," I said.

He met my gaze, his face expressionless.

"She won't pay for my mistake. I won't allow that."

"She benefits from it, then? If you had not interfered today, she would have been saved and we would not be having this conversation. By saving her, _you_ set this in motion. It is _your _fault that I am reduced to this. I will set this right and protect my mate. I will not let her suffer for your stupidity."

I repeated myself, emphasizing each word. "_**I will not allow it**_."

His eyebrows shot up. He wasn't expecting this – he hadn't imagined that I would act to stop him.

He shook his head once and pulled Lilly into his lap. She only looked back and forth between me and Jasper, as her thoughts showed that she was torn about what to do.

"I won't let Lilly live in danger, even a slight danger. You don't feel about anyone the way I feel about her, Edward, and you haven't lived through what I've lived through, whether you've seen my memories or not. You don't understand. I've only just found her, I will not lose her."

"I'm not disputing that, Jasper. But I'm telling you now; I won't allow you to hurt Isabella Swan." We stared at each other; not glaring, but measuring the opposition. I felt him sample the mood around me, testing my determination.

"Jay," Lilly said, interrupting us.

He held my gaze for a moment more, and then looked at her. "Don't bother telling me you can protect yourself, Lilly. I already know that. I've still got to –"

"That's not what I'm going to say." Lilly interrupted. "I was going to ask you for a favor."

I saw what was on her mind, and my mouth fell open with an audible gasp. I stared at her, shocked, only vaguely aware that everyone besides Lilly, Jasper and Alice was now eyeing me warily.

"I know you love me and I love you too, more than words or actions can describe and I thank you for that and wanting to protect me. But I would really appreciate it if you didn't try to kill Bella. First of all, I can see that Edward's serious and I don't want you two fighting. Secondly, she's my best friend."

"And she's mine, too." Alice added. "At least, she's going to be."

It was clear as glass in her head: _Alice, smiling, with her icy white arm around the girl's warm, fragile shoulders. And Bella was smiling, too, her arm around Alice's waist._

The vision was rock solid; only the timing of it was unsure.

"But…Lilly…"Jasper pleaded.

I couldn't manage to turn my head to see his expression. I couldn't tear myself away from the image in Alice's head in order to hear his.

"I love her, Jay. She's the first true friend I had, before I met you guys, and I know she won't say anything. If she says anything to anyone, it would be me because she is probably worried since I spend so much time around you guys and if I have to, I will use my gift and have her believe what I tell her about Edward and you really being next to us. I would rather not, but if it will save her life, I will. Please, _mon amour_, just let her be."

I was still locked into Alice's thoughts. I saw the future shimmer as Jasper's resolve floundered in the face of Lilly's unexpected request.

"Ah," Alice sighed, bringing everyone's attention to her as well as breaking Lilly and Jasper's intense gaze. His indecision had cleared a new future. "See? Bella's not going to say anything. She will talk to Lilly about it out of worry and curiosity, just as Lilly said, but there is no need to use her gift on her. There's nothing to worry about." Lilly smiled gratefully at Jasper, and he returned it, though the smile did not reach his eyes as he kissed her cheek.

But the way Alice said the girl's name…like they were already close confidants…

"Alice," I choked. "What…does this…?"

"I told you when we got home that there was a change coming. I don't know, Edward." But she locked her jaw, and I could see that there was more. She was trying not to think about it; she was focusing very hard on Jasper suddenly, though he was too stunned to have progressed much in his decision making.

She did this sometimes when she was trying to keep something from me. She was in love with Jasper before Lilly came along, and still has feelings for him, though she would never interfere in their relationship and happiness.

"What, Alice? What are you hiding?" I heard Emmett grumble. He always got frustrated when Alice and I had these kinds of conversations. Lilly was looking confused between the two of us as Jasper whispered in her ear what we were doing.

She shook her head, trying not to let me in.

"Is it about the girl?" I demanded. "Is it about Bella?"

She had her teeth gritted in concentration, but when I spoke Bella's name, she slipped.

Her slip only lasted the tiniest portion of a second, but that was long enough.

**(Lilly's POV)**

Edward's chair hit the floor as he jumped out of the chair and on to his feet.

"NO!" He shouted. He looked stunned as he just realized that he was on his feet.

"Edward!" Carlisle was on his feet, too, his arm on Edward's shoulder. It was obvious that he was barely aware of him.

"It's solidifying," Alice whispered. "Every minute you're more decided. There're really is only two ways left for her. It's one or the other, Edward."

By the look on his face, it was obvious that he saw what she saw, but could not accept it, whatever 'it' was.

"No," He said again; there was no volume to his denial as he braced himself against the table.

"Will somebody please let the rest of us in on the mystery?" Thank you, Emmett!

"I have to leave." Edward whispered to Alice, ignoring him.

"Edward, we've already been over that." Emmett said loudly. "That's the best way to start the girl talking. Besides, if you take off, we won't know for sure if she's talking or not. You have to stay and deal with this."

"I don't see you going anywhere, Edward." Alice told him. "I don't know if you can leave anymore." She paused. "Think about it. Think about leaving." She added quietly.

A painful expression crossed his face that then turned into determination. Like he couldn't sanction either future that he'd apparently condemned her to; whatever they were. I remained silently listening, not wanting to interrupt with a question that would only cause my best guy friend more pain.

"I'm not entirely sure of Jasper, Edward." Alice went on. I snapped my gaze back up to Jasper worriedly. He sent me a silent apology by emotion and in his expression. "If you leave, if he thinks she's a danger to us or especially Lilly…"

"I don't hear that," Edward contradicted her, still not paying much attention to the rest of us. It was obvious that Jasper was wavering in his decision, not wanting to hurt me, but wanting to protect me.

"Not right at this moment. Will you risk her life leave her undefended?" Alice challenged.

"Why are you doing this to me?" He groaned, his head falling into his hands.

"I love her, too. Or I will. It's not the same, but I want her around for that. Not to mention, she's Lilly's best girlfriend and Lilly's your best friend. Jasper will do what it takes to protect Lilly, even if it means temporarily hurting her. Do you want to hurt your best friend when you could do something to prevent it?" She pressed.

He looked up at me worriedly. I gave him a pleading gaze.

_Please, Edward? If you stay, I will help you in whatever actions you choose to take. Losing her will not only hurt me, but hurt you. I don't want you to be hurt and I don't want you to leave me. I don't want to lose either of my best friends. I love you both. _

He sighed, then nodded at me, bringing a smile to my face.

It looked like he just remembered something, because his gaze snapped to Alice.

"Love her, too?" He whispered incredulously.

She sighed. "You are so blind, Edward. Can't you see where you're headed? Can't you see where you already are? It's more inevitable than the sun rising in the east. See what I see…"

He shook his head, horrified. "No." He kept shaking his head as if trying to shut out the visions she revealed to him. "I don't have to follow that course. I'll leave. I will change the future."

"You can try." She said her voice skeptical.

"Oh, come on!" Emmett bellowed.

"Pay attention," Rose hissed at him. "Alice sees him falling for a human! How classically Edward!" She made a gagging sound.

"What?" Emmett said, startled. Then his booming laugh echoed through the room. "Is that what's been going on?" He laughed again. "Tough break, Edward."

"Fall for a human?" Esme repeated in a stunned voice. "For the girl he saved today? Fall in love with her?"

"What do you see, Alice?_ Exactly_." Jasper demanded.

She turned towards us as Edward continued to stare numbly at the side of her face.

"It all depends on whether he is strong enough or not. Either he'll kill her himself," – She turned to meet Edward's gaze again, glaring – "which would really irritate me, Edward, not to mention what it would do to you and Lilly-" she turned to face Jasper and I again, "or she'll be one of us someday."

Some of us gasped; I didn't look to see who.

"That's not going to happen!" Edward was shouting again. "Either one!"

Alice didn't seem to hear him. "It all depends," she repeated. "He may be just strong enough not to kill her – but it will be close. It will take an amazing amount of control." She mused. "more than even Carlisle has, but he may just be strong enough…the only thing he's not strong enough to do is stay away from her. That's a lost cause."

I couldn't find my voice. No one else seemed to be able to either. The room was still.

Edward stared at Alice while everyone stared at him. We all seemed to be horrified.

After a long moment, Carlisle sighed. "Well, this complicates things."

"I'll say!" Emmett agreed. His voice was still close to laughter. Trust Emmett to find the joke in the destruction of my best friend's lives.

"I suppose the plans remain the same, though." Carlisle said thoughtfully. "We'll stay, and watch. Obviously, no one will…hurt the girl." He looked towards Jasper pointedly as Edward visibly stiffened.

"No," Jasper said quietly. "I can agree to that. If Alice sees only two ways –"

"No!" Edward's voice was not a shout or a growl or a cry of despair, but some combination of the three. "No!" He shouted once more before stalking out of the room. Esme touched his arm as he passed, but he didn't acknowledge the gesture and ran out of the house towards the forest, clearing the river in one bound and raced into the woods, just as it began to rain.

**A/N:**** So, what did you think of the family meeting? Dramatic, huh? Read and Review! If you have any questions or comments, post them in my reviews and I will answer them in my next Author's Note. **

**If you liked this story, check out the other ones on my page! I also started a new story called ****'The Heart's Desire'****! **

'The Major'  
>'Pretexting'<br>'Attempting to Covet'  
>'Mirror Image'<br>'Other Worldly Beauty'  
>'Perplexing Revelations'<br>'Far Fetched Realities'  
>'Twilight ReVAMPed'<br>'The Heart's Desire'** NEW!**

**Read and Review!**

_I am also currently accepting Twilight stories to Beta if anyone needs one and their story involves Jasper/any female lead or Bella/selected male leads. I will accept other characters depending on the plot. PM me for further details!_

_Thanks for taking an interest in my writing!  
>- Bella'Xo<br>_**Xo BellaItalia oX**


	14. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer. ****All publicly recognizable characters, settings etc., are the property of their respective owners. The original characters, ideas and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended. I only do this for fun. –B**

**Chapter 11  
><strong>**(Jasper's POV)**

I couldn't blame him for wanting to get out of here. The emotions were making me dizzy enough with Emmett's humor, Carlisle's never ending patience, Lilly's worry and relief, Rosalie's self-righteous disgust, Alice's confidence, my confidence in the confidence, and worst of all for him…Esme's joy.

I can't blame her for being happy that her son has finally found a mate. Our family was finally complete and even though he hasn't given in to Bella Swan yet, he will. It is impossible to stay away from one's mate. I don't know about having a human mate, nor did I know it was possible, but from having Lilly, I know that the pull is just too strong.

"Will he be okay, Alice?" Esme murmured softly.

"He's just going for a run." Alice nodded. "He just needs time to think through everything. With Edward's beliefs, it's a lot for him to take in."

"What beliefs?" Lilly asked.

"Edward believes that vampires don't have souls. That it is the price you pay for immortality. He believes that we are all damned." Carlisle explained gently.

"Damned?" Lilly's eyebrows rose towards her hairline. "As in hell?" Carlisle nodded solemnly. "And you believe this as well?" She asked looking around at all of us. No one answered or made eye contact with her. "No, you guys couldn't be damned. It's impossible."

"What makes you say that?" Emmett snorted.

"What makes you think you are?" She challenged, looking him in the eyes.

"We've killed people. We're monsters," I whispered when Emmett didn't answer. "Me more so than them."

"I kill people. I'm part vampire. Am I damned as well?" She pressed as she shifted her gaze to me.

"No!" I snapped. "You could never be damned…you're my angel." I ended in a whisper.

"Really?" She raised her hand and rested it on my cheek. "You couldn't help what happened to you in the past. You were led astray and manipulated by an evil cunt. But you knew what you were doing wasn't right and you felt horrible about every life you took. Monsters don't feel remorse. As soon as you heard of another way to live, you reached out and took it without thinking about it or looking back. All of you." She looked around the table at everyone as they watched her intently with interest and awe. "Yes, you may slip up, but it's not done on purpose. God is forgiving and he loves us all. If we don't have souls, then how was I born? Me, the hybrid? How could we feel as strongly as we do? We all feel love, happiness, hope, have faith…soulless monsters feel any of that. Jasper got me to change my diet to animals. Yes, I need to hunt at least one criminal a month to keep me strong enough to handle my gift without becoming too weak to even walk, but the bottom line is that when Jasper found out how I fed, he could have given in to temptation, but he didn't. He had me change my ways and still protect the human race with my feeding habits. Even those who feed on humans differently than I did aren't monsters. Are lion's soulless monsters because they eat other animals! It's just the way of life and how God created all of us. How can the lions have souls, but not us? There is no difference!"

There was a moment of silence around the table before Carlisle broke it.

"She's right." He said quietly. "Everything she said, she's right." He looked up at Lilly with venom filled eyes. "Thank you."

"You don't have to thank me." She smiled shyly. "I only pointed out the truth and facts of life. If we were soulless…there is no way I could have been born from my human mother."

Everyone around the table nodded with small smiles gracing their faces.

"If only it were so easy to convince Edward. He's stubborn and set in his beliefs." Alice mused.

"Maybe Bella will change that." Lilly said. "But I know I will help the best I can if it ever comes up."

"We would appreciate that." Carlisle nodded.

I kissed her neck and slowly moved to her ear. "You're amazing." I whispered.

"So, you're switching to the animal diet?" Emmett asked excitedly.

"Yes, but as I said, I still need to hunt at least one human a month as to keep my strength up. My gift takes a lot out of me. I tried to not feed as much and I ended up so weak that I could barely stand. I had to crawl for miles into the city and I took an innocent life that night. Someone who came up to me and tried to help me lost his life because I didn't have a choice in my meal. I pray for that person every night." She looked down ashamed.

"Hey, none of that." I growled. "It's not your fault."

She nodded and looked up at me with a smile that didn't reach her eyes and pecked me on the lips.

"You'll have to hunt with me sometime!" Emmett said trying to break the tension. "I'll teach you how to eat grizzlies!"

"They're his favorite." Rose rolled her eyes, but you could see the smile that she was trying to hide.

"While we're on the topic…" I began nervously.

Lilly knew what I was about to say and she gave me an encouraging nod and sent me her courage. I returned the smile and sent her a burst of gratitude.

"I am going to partake in the same diet Lilly is with hunting one criminal a month."

"What? Why?" Alice gasped.

"Because, my gift is taking a lot out of me and Lilly and I had a talk yesterday and revealed an important piece of information. We discovered the reason why I slip up so much." I took a deep breath. I didn't want them to feel bad about what I was about to disclose, but they needed to know my reasoning behind my choice. "I don't know if you realize it, but blood lust is an emotion." I paused, making eye contact with each member of my family, aside from Lilly and Edward. "Every time I have slipped has been when one or more of you were around. Not only am I feeling my blood lust, but all of yours as well."

Esme gasped, raising a hand to her mouth in shock. Carlisle's eyes were wide, along with everyone else. Shame and self-loathing began to coat their emotions as they took in everything I've said.

"I'm so sorry, son. I had no idea!" Carlisle apologized. "How it never crossed my mind, I have no idea and I'm so sorry that I couldn't come to the conclusion faster."

"No one did. Lilly was the first to point it out after the incident in the canteen with Bella." I explained. "When the breeze blew her scent towards us, I was feeling Edward's blood lust for his singer on top of my own. If it wasn't for Lilly getting me out of there, she would have been killed along with anyone who got in my way."

"How will drinking human blood help this problem?" Rose asked genuinely curious.

"Like Lilly, human blood strengthens not only me, but my gift. Animal blood doesn't let me reach my full potential and doesn't allow me full control over my gift. If I drink human blood once a month, I will be able to control my gift to the point where I can dull the emotions around me so that they don't affect me so much. I won't feel your blood lust as fiercely anymore." I concluded.

Understanding and acceptance coated everyone's emotions and pride and love radiated from my Lilly. Even without my gift, I could see it in her eyes.

"If this is what needs to be done, then I can keep donated blood in the house for the both of you, if it would make it any easier on the two of you? Would that make it any easier?" Carlisle suggested.

I know Carlisle didn't like the thought of us killing humans, even criminals. But he was going to stand behind us no matter what we decided. That is something I respected about him.

"That would be fine by me." Lilly nodded.

"I agree. It might be the best course of action for as long as we are in Forks at the least, considering we have the treaty with the wolves." I reminded him.

"Yes, that's right." Esme agreed. "We don't want to cause any problems with them."

"Then it's settled." Carlisle concluded.

Silence filled the room once again before Carlisle dismissed everyone from the meeting.

"One more thing, Lilly." He called her over.

We both approached him and looked at him questioningly.

"I would like to let you know that I have found out some information on you from my research."

"Really? What did you find out?" She asked excitedly.

"Well, from the tests we have done, the results concluded that you are ¾ vampire and ¼ human. It is possible to change you the rest of the way if you ever wished it. They call a human/vampire hybrid a _Dhampir._ There are legends about them down in Brazil and the Amazon. You are indeed immortal and will stop aging at the age of 21 when you reach full adulthood, so you will still be younger than Jasper since he is 23 and the oldest of my sons. It is possible for you to bear a child with Jasper, so I suggest that until you want to try for a child, you us protection during sexual intercourse." He acknowledged.

I gasped. Me? A father? I can have a child with my mate? A wide smile stretched over my face as I looked down excitedly at Lilly.

"I can be a father!" I picked her smiling form up off the ground, spinning her around happily as she giggled. "We can have children together! I can't believe it!"

I set her down and began to kiss her all over her face, then moved to her lips and stayed there, immediately deepening the kiss. I couldn't help it, I was so thrilled. For about a century and a half, I never thought that I could be a father like I had always wanted to be. It secretly killed me that I was never going to be able to hold my son or daughter in my arms and teach them things about the world and make them strong. I had always thought that it was my punishment for everything I had done with Maria in the Southern Wars. I don't know what I did that God gave me someone like Lilly who was capable of giving me things that I had always dreamed of.

I pulled back and smiled widely at her. She returned my smile, knowing how much I had always wanted kids, but thought that I couldn't conceive. Now, because of her having ¼ human in her, I have the chance.

"I love you." I murmured, tucking a stray piece of hair behind her ear.

"As I love you, _mon cher._** (My dear)**" She replied.

**(Lilly's POV)**

That night, as Alice predicted, I received a call on my cell phone from Bella. It was about 11pm, so it was obvious that this was keeping her up as she thought about what she saw today.

"I know he was across the parking lot before Tyler's van almost killed us. I saw him and Jasper both there." Bella insisted. "The next second they were both there and he stopped the van with his hand! You saw it too, didn't you?"

"Yeah, I saw it." I confirmed.

"Good, I know I'm not going crazy." Bella sighed in relief and paused. "Have you…have you noticed anything weird about them? I mean, you are with them all the time and practically living with them."

"No, I haven't noticed anything weird, aside from what you've seen." I lied.

"Oh." She said disappointed. "Well, if you find out anything…you'd tell me, right?"

"Of course." I lied again.

If she was going to learn our secret, then she needed to either figure it out herself, or have her mate tell her after everyone agreed to let her in on our secret. As much as I hate lying to my best friend, it's not my place to tell her. It's not only my secret that I would be revealing. Not to mention, I'm so scared that she will be afraid of me and not want to be my friend anymore. No, that's silly. Bella isn't the type of person to judge people like that. I refuse to believe she would act like that.

"Anyway, I know it's late, but I just needed to talk to you about this. It's been driving me crazy." She grumbled, sounding like she was stretching.

"You can call me anytime you need to talk. It doesn't matter what time it is. I'll always be there for you, no matter what." I vowed.

"Thanks, Lilly. I'm so lucky to have a best friend like you." She said and I could tell she was smiling over the phone.

"Me too." I grinned.

"Well, I'll see you at school tomorrow. Good Night, Lil." She said yawning.

"Alright, sweet dreams, Bella." I said and hung up the phone.

**A/N:**** This was more of a filler chapter, but an important chapter none the less since Lilly finds out more about herself and what she is. If you have any questions or comments, post them in my reviews and I will answer them in my next Author's Note! **

_I am also accepting any Twilight stories involving Jasper/any female lead or Bella/selected male leads that need a Beta Reader! I will make exceptions on the characters depending on the plot. PM me for further details!_

_If you like this story, you will love my other Jasper stories as well!  
>I also am writing a new story called <em>_'The Heart's Desire'__  
>Check out my page for the summary!<br>Thanks for taking an interest in my writing!  
>-Bella'Xo<br>_**Xo BellaItalia oX**


	15. Chapter 12

**Disclaimer. ****All publicly recognizable characters, settings etc., are the property of their respective owners. The original characters, ideas and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended. I only do this for fun. –B**

**Chapter 12  
><strong>**(Lilly's POV)**

Just as Alice predicted a week of relative calmness few by after Bella and I's accident and although the family and I watched Edward quietly as he struggled to keep his distance from Bella, nothing happened. She was quite put out with the fact that he was ignoring her and I could tell by the way she looked at him and spoke, even though her indifferent exterior, it was hurting her. I felt horrible that my life was moving along perfectly while she had to watch Jasper and I show affection towards each other.

As Alice had also predicted, Bella did not breathe a word about Edward's rescue to anyone, aside from me. When people asked her about it, she would just say that Edward had been next to her and pulled her out of the way. I said the same thing involving Jasper. That the four of us were just chatting and Jasper yanked me into the bed of the truck. No one second guessed us or questioned us further and by now, the accident was old news.

Edward refused to let any of the family speak to or associate with Bella, aside from me that is. He trusted me not to reveal anything about him, the family or myself and concluded that it would only make her more suspicious if I suddenly stopped my friendship with her. Not that he could stop me anyway. He knew that I would back him up no matter what and wouldn't push any issues regarding his choices whether he decided to pursue Bella or not. He knew I had my opinions on everything and that I just wanted them both to be happy, but he respected that I didn't push the matter like Alice was, nor was I completely against it like Rose was. He was able to talk to me about how he felt and what was going through his mind with no judgment and that I would be someone who would listen to his fears and wants, only giving my opinion and advice when warranted. We grew incredibly close over the week. He even took me to this beautiful field filled with flowers that he went to often to think. He told me that he was so happy that he found someone that he could confide in and would always be on his side no matter what my opinions were.

Alice was rather put out with Edward not letting her talk to Bella. She didn't understand why it was okay that I got to still remain friends with her when she couldn't. But Edward was adamant that she listen to what he said regarding her.

It was early in March now and we were all sitting in the canteen. As Alice often did these days, she had a quick vision and glanced around the family.

"Bella's going to stare at Edward in a minute, look normal." She whispered.

I leaned over to take Jasper's hand and he smiled softly at me with a look of pure love and adoration. The others did similar things, as well as laughed and pretended to take a bite of their food, giving the pretense of normalcy.

Once Bella had looked over at us and then looked away again, we all relaxed a little. Alice risked a quick glace in Bella's direction and let out a long, exasperated sigh.

"Stay out of it Alice, it's not going to happen!" Edward snapped, receiving a glare from her in return.

"I'll admit, you're better than I thought." Alice grumbled in frustration. "You've got the future all snarled up and senseless again. I hope you're happy."

"It makes plenty of sense to me." Edward sighed and Alice let out a snort, but didn't argue.

"Why are you pressing this Alice? Edward's doing the right thing, staying away from Bella." Rose said glaring at Alice.

"I don't have to explain myself to you, Rose." Alice answered, clearly annoyed. "Why are you so against Bella anyways?"

"She deserves a normal human life, Alice! She deserves a loving husband to grow old with and children! There is no reason for her to become what we are when she is gifted with all of that." Rose argued back.

I felt Jasper send out calm throughout our table, quieting the arguing and temper tantrum that was guaranteed to escalate if it wasn't put to a stop now. I smiled gratefully at him, not wanting to see my sisters fight.

As I looked at him, I noticed that his eyes were relatively dark and I frowned.

"How are you doing?" I asked him concerned and so quietly that the vampires around the table would have had to struggle to hear us.

"Hmm," Jasper said noncommittally as he reached over and slid his hand up my thigh, squeezing it lightly.

"Maybe you two should ditch the last two periods and meet us in the parking lot." Alice whispered to me.

I sighed, knowing that meant that he was going to slip up. We have been hunting animals so far all week and tomorrow we were supposed to have our first drink of human blood since starting the new diet. Jasper was nervous about it, but refused to change his mind.

For the rest of lunch, Jasper entertained himself and her, making sexual advances with his hands and emotions. We haven't had sex yet, but it was something that we both desperately wanted. The sexual tension between the two of us was so thick, it was stifling. But Jasper had explained that he wanted to wait for the right time when his family wasn't in the house. We decided that this weekend while the rest of the Cullen's were hunting, since we wouldn't need to go because we would have our donated human blood, we would be together for the first time and I couldn't be more excited.

Saturday was supposed to be to trip to La Push, but I told Bella that I couldn't make it because I was supposed to go 'camping' with the Cullen's. She understood, but was disappointed. I promised that I would make it up to her next time she wanted to go out with the group. (As long as it wasn't to La Push).

Speaking of which, I had my first introduction with the Wolves last weekend when I stayed at the Cullen's. I had to sign the treaty as well as meet the Elders. Their names were Harry Clearwater, Billy Black, and old Quil Ateara. The pack's Alpha, Sam Uley, was there as well as two other's named Jared Cameron and Paul Lahote.

It went very well. The Elders were very wary of the Cullen's, but when they met me, they were quite shocked. I told them all about me and my birth into this world, how I got adopted by John and Anne, how I discovered my vampirism, my gift, my hunting habits, moving to Forks, meeting the Cullen's, being Jasper's mate and what it meant, my friendship with Bella Swan, and deciding to change my diet with the exception of donated blood and how Jasper was now going to partake in it lessen the risk of a slip because of how his gift worked.

They were amazed and very interested in me. The fact that I was born this way was shocking to them. They also discovered that I did not smell overly sweet to the wolves as the rest of the Cullen's did. They didn't smell like wet dog to me either. It was more like an earth-type smell. They haven't decided if they would allow me on to the rez yet, because of the fact that I did drink blood, so they were going to have a council meeting and get back to me in a week or two.

I got along with the wolves quite well, especially Paul. They were all quite shocked at this because they claimed that Paul had a problem with his temper. Jasper didn't like this at all and said that his feelings were anything but platonic. I soothed his worries by explaining that I am his mate and his alone and that I loved him and no one could ever take me from him.

Everyone parted on a good note, but they still didn't like the Cullen's and vice versa. I seemed to be the middle ground for both sides. Carlisle seems to think that it is part of my gift, that creatures of all species were drawn to me. He couldn't explain how just yet, but it was something that he was going to look into.

The bell for next period brought me out of my thoughts and Jasper helped me out of my seat. I smiled at him in thanks and he kissed my pulse point and breathed in my scent.

"Let's skip the rest of the day." I suggested.

"Alice saw that I would fail, didn't she?" He asked solemnly.

"No." I lied. "It's just that I am really thirsty and adjusting to this diet has been difficult. Alice saw that a girl was going to hurt herself next period, causing her to bleed and I don't want to take any chances." I would take the blame any day so Jasper wouldn't be sad.

He smiled and nodded, taking my hand and walking me out of the school and towards the forest.

Our hunt went well, which then resulted in a make out session until school ended. We made our way back to the school only to see Alice, Emmett and Rose standing in front of the school.

"What's going on? Where's Edward?" Jasper asked, wrapping his arms around my waist and laying his chin on my shoulder.

"Edward is having a jealous tantrum because other guys are asking Bella about the dance." Alice explained.

"That would be funny to see," Jasper grinned. "Isn't it girl's choice though? Why are they asking her?"

"The same reason that guys are asking Lilly!" She said, and then smacked her hand over her mouth, looking at me apologetically as Jasper growled, turning me around to face him.

"Guys have been hounding you again? Why didn't you tell me?" He growled.

"It's no big deal. I turned them down." I soothed him. "They just wanted to know if I've chosen who I wanted to go with yet. It's the same thing that they are probably doing to Bella."

"And have you?" He smirked, pulling me flush against him. "Decided who you want to go with?"

"Hmmm…" I murmured as he nuzzled his face into my neck. "I think I might ask Matt." I joked. He growled low in my ear, but didn't get too upset as he felt my amusement.

"You little monster," He continued as he began to nip at my pulse point, making me giggle. "Now, who were you going to ask?"

"Edward?" He growled again and began to tickle my sides.

"Who?" He pressed, but I could feel him smiling against my neck.

"Emmett?" I was almost convulsing with laughter by now.

"Try again." He began to nip my ear lope.

"Okay! Okay! I give! Uncle! Uncle!" I laughed and he finally stopped and pulled back to look me in the eye with a wide smile on his face. "Jasper, will you go to the girl's choice dance with me?"

"Hmm…I'll have to think about it." He said as he pretended to ponder.

"Hey!" I smacked his arm and he gripped it pretending it hurt.

"Alright, alright…I'll go with you my little flower." He said grabbing me up in a hug and kissed me cheek.

Minutes passed and finally Edward pulled up in front of the school, but still a ways away from them. Bella seemed to be stuck behind him in her truck with Tyler Crowley behind her. She was clearly irritated with whatever happened, and Edward holding up traffic only seemed to add fuel to the fire as she glowered at the back of Edward's car.

"What is he doing?" Jasper asked.

"I think he has lost his mind." Rose sighed.

"Should we help the poor girl?" Emmett suggested and Rose turned a glared at him with narrowed eyes. "Fine, fine!" He held his hands up in surrender. "We help Edward then!"

We walked at a slow human walk, stopping to talk frequently about nothing to waste time. We watched as Tyler got out of his car and walked up to Bella's window, tapping on the glass.

"Hey, sorry Tyler. I'm stuck behind Cullen" Bella said apologetically but clearly angered.

"Oh, I know." Tyler insisted, clearly undeterred by her mood. "I just wanted to ask you something while we're trapped here." His grin was cocky.

I could almost see steam come out of Bella's ears as she gave a death glare to Tyler.

"Will you ask me to the spring dance?" He asked.

"I'm not going to be in town, Tyler." She told him, irritation still plain in her voice. I already spoke to her about the spring dance and she admitted that she really just didn't want to go since she couldn't dance. Going out of town was only an excuse to let any suitors down easy.

"Yeah, Mike said that."

"Then why -?" She started to ask.

He shrugged his shoulders. "I was hoping you were just letting him down easy."

He eyes flashed, and then she seemed to calm herself down some. "Sorry, Tyler." She didn't sound sorry in the slightest. "I really am going to be out of town."

He accepted the excuse, his self-assurance untouched. "That's cool. We still have prom." He said and then strutted back to his car.

Bella had a horrified expression on her face as we finally arrived at Edward's Volvo. It was going to be a tight squeeze, but with Emmett up front and Alice being so tiny, we would manage to fit. Edward was laughing hysterically, nearly breaking the steering wheel. We were all quite confused as to what was the point of all of that.

"What's so funny?" Emmett asked.

Edward just shook his head before shaking with fresh laughter as Bella began to rev her engine angrily. She looked as though she wished that she was driving a tank so she could ram into the back of his car. I shot her an apologetic look and she smiled and nodded, giving me the sign that she would call me later. I nodded, returning her smile before hopping into the back before Jasper.

"Let's go!" Rosalie hissed impatiently. "Stop being an idiot, if you can."

The ride home was quiet except for Edward chuckling every now and then, making me smile, resulting in Jasper smiling. He always said that seeing me smile made him smile.

We turned into the drive, speeding up now that no one was around to see us.

"So, do I get to talk to Bella now?" Alice suddenly asked.

"No!" Edward snapped. She clearly ruined his good mood.

"No fair! What am I waiting for?" She whined.

"I haven't decided anything, Alice."

"Whatever, Edward." She grumbled, crossing her arms over her chest.

A moment of silence passed before Edward broke it.

"What's the point in getting to know her?" He mumbled. "If I'm just going to kill her?

Alice hesitated for a second. "You have a point." She admitted reluctantly.

"You won't kill her, Edward." I encouraged him as I placed my hand on his shoulder from the back seat. "Even if I have to go with you every time you go near her to make sure I can control you ,just in case, until you have full control over your thirst around her."

"Thanks, Lilly." He smiled in the review mirror.

He took the final hairpin turn at 90 mph, and then screeched to a stop an inch from the back garage wall.

"Enjoy your run." Rosalie said smugly as he threw himself out of the car.

"Call me if you need me." I smiled meekly at him as Jasper put his arm around my waist, leading me towards the house.

"Thanks, I will." He nodded.

It was past midnight when I got a phone call from Edward. Jasper and I were lounging around in his study in front of his fire place. I sat in between his legs as he held a book in front of us as we took turns reading. He picked up my phone and looked at the caller I.D.

"Edward." He told me, handing me the phone.

I hit the 'talk' button and put it to my ear. "Hey Edward."

"Hey Lil." He sounded stressed.

"What's wrong?" I asked sitting up straighter in Jasper's lap.

"I'm sitting outside Bella's house." He sighed. "I-I just needed to know where she was and that she was safe. I want to see her face."

"She's sleeping. Charlie would throw a fit if you knocked on their door right now." I told him.

"Can you and Jasper come over here? Just for a few minutes?" He pleaded.

I looked up at Jasper questioningly. He closed his eyes, sighing dramatically and nodded.

"We'll be there in less than ten minutes." I said.

"Thanks guys. I really appreciate this." He said sounding relieved.

"Anytime." I hit the end button on my phone and stood up, extending my hand offering to help Jasper up. He took my hand and stood up, but instead of letting me go, he flung me onto his back and jumped out the window.

We stopped at the tree line of Bella's property and he set me on my feet.

"I could have ran myself, you know?" I raised an eyebrow.

"I know. I just wanted to hold you." He smiled cheekily.

I smirked, wrapping an arm around his neck and pulled him to meet my lips. A twig snapping to the east made us break apart. I smelled the air and immediately smelled Edward as he approached us.

"Thanks for coming." He said.

"It's not a problem." Jasper nodded. "Now, what's wrong?"

"I am going to sneak into her room through her window. I need to see her. I can't explain it." Edward rambled.

"No, I understand." Jasper stopped him. "It's the mating pull."

Edward took a deep unnecessary breath looking down at his feet. "Could she really be my mate?"

"Alice saw it and it sounds like you are feeling the pull." I shrugged.

"I don't know what to do." He groaned.

I walked up to him, pulling him into my arms in a tight affectionate hug. "Everything will be okay. Just take it one day at the time." He squeezed me tighter, and then released me. I pulled back, giving him a small smile. "She's a great girl, Edward. You both deserve each other. Take it where ever you want and know that I will be behind you no matter what."

"I love you, Lil. I couldn't ask for a better best friend."

"Me too." I backed up into Jasper's embrace. "Now, what do you need us to do?"

"Stay outside her window while I go in. If I look like I am going to lose control, I want you to use your gifts on me and get me out of there." He instructed.

"Got it." We nodded.

The three of us climbed the tree next to Bella's bedroom window and we watched as Edward climbed in. I could tell he was holding his breath as he slowly walked further into the room. Bella was sound asleep in her bed.

A few minutes passed and Edward still hadn't taken a breath. Just as he turned to leave, Bella made a sound. He turned to look at her in surprise, thinking the he was caught.

"Edward." She mumbled in her sleep.

He gasped, taking in a breath. I grabbed on to Jasper's shirt in suspense, waiting to see if we had to use our gifts. He smell really was strong in her room and I knew from experience. I could only imagine how Edward must feel. His throat must be on fire.

We watched as he took another slow breath in and pretty soon he was breathing regularly. He looked over his shoulder at us and grinned in triumph. I grinned in return and gave him the thumbs up sign as Jasper smiled proudly.

"Edward…don't go…" She groaned in her sleep again.

So Bella was a sleep talker.

Edward watched in fascination, taking a seat in the rocking chair in the corner of her room. We stayed for about an hour, before he got up and came towards the window. He looked back wistfully one more time before sliding back through the window and jumping out, landing on the balls of his feet. Jasper and I followed suit, landing a millisecond apart.

"Let's get home." Edward said.

The three of us disappeared in a flash into the night. I had a good feeling that tonight opened many doors for Edward. Which one he chose to go through, though, was all on him.

**A/N:**** So Edward is finally beginning to give in to his and Bella's mating. Up next is Lilly and Jasper's Saturday night and Bella's trip to La Push and more. What do you think will happen when Bella finds out what Lilly really is, as well as the Cullen's? **

**If you have any questions or comments, post them in my reviews and I will be happy to answer them in my next Author's Note!**

**I am also still accepting any Twilight stories that involve Jasper/any female lead or Bella/selected male leads that need a Beta Reader. I will make exceptions on the characters depending on the plot. PM me for details…  
><strong>_- Bella'Xo  
><em>**Xo BellaItalia oX**


	16. Chapter 13

**Disclaimer. ****All publicly recognizable characters, settings etc., are the property of their respective owners. The original characters, ideas and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended. I only do this for fun. –B**

**Chapter 13  
><strong>**(Jasper's POV)**

I had Lilly in my arms on the couch as we sat in front of the television watching a historical documentary on the Revolutionary War that caught both of our attentions. It still amazes me that we have the same interests in the historical wars that happened all around the world.

We were settled in our sleep wear; me in a pair of dark grey sweatpants with a tight fitted black long sleeved shirt. She wore a navy tank top outlined with lace and a pair of skin tight booty shorts completely made out of black lace. She wore brown slippers that looked like boots that came up just under her knees. Every time she stood up I would have to convulsively swallow the venom that pooled in my mouth. God, I just wanted to skink my teeth into her…

The family had just left on their overnight hunting trip about four and a half hours ago, leaving Lil and I alone for the night. I admit, I was a bit nervous, but extremely excited about what was to come. We both have been filled with sexual tension all week and I felt as though I was going to spontaneously combust!

"Are you thirsty?" Lilly asked looking up at me tucked under my arm.

As soon as she mentioned it, the burn in my throat elevated and I nodded at her. I leaned forward about to get up and she put her hand on my chest, stopping me.

"Allow me." She smirked.

I watched as the fridge in the kitchen opened on its own and the two bags of blood that we brought up from our new stash in the basement floated at the same time as two thermoses levitated from the cabinet diagonal from the sink. She distributed each bag into a thermos and one by one was warmed up in the microwave. Finally, she flicked her wrist and they flew across the room into her hands.

"Here," She said handing me one of the thermoses.

I shook my head in amazement, still in utter awe every time I see her use her gift. "You're amazing." I chuckled.

"Well I didn't want you to leave me. I'm comfy." She pouted.

I kissed her bottom lip that was jutted out and smiled holding up my thermos.

"Acclamations!" **(Cheers)**

She grinned at me and clicked her thermos with mine and brought it to her lips as I did mine.

My eyes rolled into the back of my head as I tasted the warm human blood for the first time in six years. The best part was that there was no guilt, no disappointed family members, and no emotions from my prey bringing me to my knees…just pleasure. I wasn't worried about my eyes turning red and students noticing on Monday, because I have a collection of golden contact lenses on hand from all of my slips. I just will have to wear them for a week until my eye color turns back to normal.

We finished with our thermoses and I watched as the floated back into the kitchen and washed themselves out with bleach in the sink, then was placed into the dishwasher for an extra rinse cycle. We didn't want the family to be bothered with the smell of fresh human blood.

We finished the documentary and decided to take it upstairs into our bedroom, since it was around 10pm. We had been driving each other crazy the entire time with intimate touches and sensual kisses. Not to mention, the smell of her arousal was driving me insane and I had to do everything in my power not to ravish her right here and now. I stopped myself by remembering that she deserved better than having her first time being on the couch in my living room. It thrilled me to no end that I was to be her first and last. When I asked why she was still a virgin, she told me that she honestly hadn't found any man worthy of such a gift; someone that she loved and could see herself with forever. She takes the vows of marriage very seriously and she expected the man she marries to have those same views. (Being raised when I did, I couldn't help but to have those old fashion views on marriage. I might not have those views on sex before marriage, but on the vows of marriage, yes.) She humbled me with her words and my heart swelled with love.

I followed her down the hall to the staircase. She gave me a seductive smirk, followed by a wink as she turned the corner and began the journey up the stairs. I followed her up, my eyes on the sway of her hips as she walked. I could feel myself becoming hypnotized as venom began to pool into my mouth. She was trying to break me, that little minx!

We entered our bedroom and as soon as we were both completely inside, I kicked the door shut with my foot, grabbed her arm and turned her, slamming her against the wall. My body was pressed up against hers and she moaned as she felt my erection through my sweats. I could smell her arousal penetrate the room. I made a show of taking a deep breath in and growled into her neck.

"Do you have any idea what you have been doing to me with this little outfit you have been wearing all night you little tease?" I asked as I nipped at her neck.

She giggled and tilted her neck in a direction that gave me better access. "You're only a tease if you don't plan on following through. It's not my fault if I don't like to wear much to bed. If anything, you're the one who won't follow through in the end."

She was right. I never noticed before because she would always wear one of my t-shirts and a pair of her booty shorts. That was tempting enough, but not that she has her own shirt on…damn.

"So I'm the tease, huh?" I smirked, pulling back to look at her and raised an eyebrow at her challenge. "I bet I can change your opinion." I said, sending a burst of lust in her direction.

"Cheater."

"Oh, really?" I asked as both of my eyebrows rose towards my hairline in surprise, pulling back the lust I was pushing out towards her. I gently touching the side of her face, and fixed my gaze on her eyes, tilting my head slowly as though I was going to kiss her. I raised an eyebrow and grinned cheekily, but didn't stop.

I could tell that Lilly was thrown off guard by my actions and was trying to hide the fact that her pulse was racing, and that the anticipation was killing her. I could feel the tingles all over my body from the mating pull, making everything that much more pleasurable. If I could feel it, I know she could too and I was going to use this to my advantage.

"You're such a chicken." She said pushing me backwards and turning around as she opened the door. "I knew you were all talk. You don't have it in you to actually deliver. You won't even kiss me."

I growled, catching her hand before she was out of my reach and pulled her back into the bedroom. I slammed the door shut and pushed her back against it.

"You're going down." I threatened, brushing my lips teasingly against hers and I spoke. "I bet you 'chicken out' before I do."

She smiled seductively and licked my top lip, hitching her leg up on my waist and grinding her heat into my hardness. I tried to stifle my involuntary groan into her shoulder, but there was no doubt she heard me.

"Oh, yeah?" She chuckled as she continued to gyrate her hips against me. "Well I'm not going to back down – you know how much I hate losing a challenge." She ended with a groan of her own as I pressed myself harder against her heat.

I lifted my head and pressed my forehead against hers; completely taken over by the pleasure she was producing in my groin. I closed my eyes as I spoke. "No turning back now, darlin'."

"I don't plan to." She answered, slamming her lips against mine in a heated kiss. "As a matter of fact, I _insist_ we take this a step further."

She slid her fingers into my hair, pulling it slightly. I moaned, bringing one of my hands that were on her hips lightly up her side to her neck. I felt her shiver slightly as I did this and pulled her closer. Never in my life have I ever been so aroused.

We broke off the kiss for a moment, panting for unneeded air.

"Okay, so we know you're not too chicken to kiss…but that doesn't really prove much of anything…" I whispered.

"Oh really, now?" She said, and she moved one of her hands from my hair, down to my neck, lightly touching my skin; moving around to my chest. She traced a lingering path from my hard pecks down the front of my body to my belly. "Well, how about this?" She pressed, slowly rubbing my erection through my sweats. "Does this prove 'anything'?"

"God damn." I muttered. "I think you're winning – we can't have that." With that, I pulled her down to kiss me again and in one quick, calculated movement, flitted us over to my bed, rolling us over so that I was on top of her, my erection pressing in between her legs in a way that produced a tingling sensation so intense that she gasped out loud, hitching both of her legs around mine.

"So," I whispered, looking into her eyes that were as dark as mine most likely were. I agonizingly slowly reached down, lightly rubbing my hands over her breasts and down to her stomach where the hem of her shirt was and began to pull it up just as slow. "Do you dare to bare-all?"

"Hmmm…" She replied between lingering kisses. I moved down to her neck to give her a chance to answer and placed open mouth kisses on her pulse point where I will soon be marking her as mine. "Only if…it's….tastefully done." She panted as I found her sweet spot on her neck. She began to squirm under me as I did this, moving my fingertips up and down her base sides. (Her shirt was up to her breasts.)

"Yes," I murmured, switching sides. "That's important." I moved up and breathed lightly into her ear. "Only if it's in the name of art…"

I pulled her shirt up over her head, revealing her beautiful body and black lace bra. I looked down her body and my eyes widened in awe. Her skin was so smooth and flawless. Such beauty should only belong to the heavens. She is my angel in every aspect.

"Wow." I gasped.

To my delight, the clasp for her bra was in the front, right in-between her perky breasts. She smirked and brought her fingers to the hem of my own shirt and began to attempt to pull up. I stopped her, not making eye contact.

"What's wrong?" She asked. I could feel her concern and worry "Did I do something?"

I snapped my head up to her, looking in her eyes. "No," I shook my head. "You did nothing wrong." I said tucking a stray piece of hair behind her ear affectionately.

"Then what's the matter?" She asked.

I bit my bottom lip. I knew that I could never lie to my angel. "You know how I told you about my time with Maria, training her newborns and the battles I was in? How I never lost a fight?" She nodded. "Well, every one of those vampires I defeated left their mark, not to mention Maria and her punishments."

"What do you mean 'left their mark'?" She asked, her eyebrows knitted together.

I sighed, pulling back to sit up on my shins; I took a deep breath in through my nose and out my mouth. I slowly lifted my shirt up and over my head, tossing it to the floor on the side of my bed.

I didn't look at her, waiting for the disgust and pity she was sure to feel. Instead, what happened next shocked me. She gasped and lust and awe began to pour from her. I snapped my head in her direction, my eyes the size of watermelons.

She sat up, effectively straddling me and began to trace the scars on my chest. I close my eyes at the pleasure and began to purr loudly. No one has ever been brave enough or even liked them enough to touch me the way she is. She's so excepting of every part of me and she actually loves them if I was going by her emotions alone.

"Is this why you wear long sleeves and pants all the time?" She murmured.

"Yes." I whispered back.

"Why?" She looked up from my chest to my eyes; hers were filled with venom tears.

I pursed my lips and prepared to answer.

"In our world, when other creatures see these battle scars…it is a sign that screams 'danger.' I've never met another with as many as me. They either get scared of me or attempt to start a fight." I clarified. "Other's seek me out enough as it is because of my reputation. As I've explained to you before, vampires are always trying to test themselves. Especially since we have all of eternity, we try to find things to do with our time."

"But surely when we are here at home, you can let loose." She paused, biting her bottom lip in her nervous habit. "Or with me?"

I let out a deep breath through my nose. "It makes them uncomfortable. For the first few months I was here, the few times that I did take my shirt off for one reason or another in front of them, I felt their fear, their pity, their uncomfortable feelings…" I looked up at her from my lap. "Eventually, I just stopped showing any skin around them." I shrugged. "Now as for you, I didn't know how you would react. I knew you are mostly a vampire, so you would see them as clearly as any of us immortals would. In my experience with sexual encounters before you came along, the women would make me keep my shirt on. You startled me when you went to take it off."

"Jasper," She cupped my face. "I think by now the Cullen's are comfortable enough to have you around with short sleeves and shorts or even without a shirt at some point. All that happened when they were first getting to know you. I would bet my life on it that that has all changed by now." She placed a chaste kiss on my lips. "As for me…I happen to find the _very_ sexy." She said with a smirk, and then turned serious. "They are a part of who you are; a sign of all you have overcome and changed for the better. They make me feel safe, knowing you can protect me." She cupped my jaw. "And I bet that if you ask the family that they will say the same thing."

I smiled in adoration at my mate. "You are exquisite." I pulled her into a tight hug. "I don't know what I would do without you, _mon amour._** (my love)** Nor do I know what I did to deserve such an amazing woman for a mate." I pulled back and cupped her cheek with the hand that wasn't on her waist and ran my thumb across her cheek bone. "Promise me that you will never leave me? I don't know if I could take it."

A lone tear fell down her cheek, but her emotions showed nothing but pure love, affection, joy, along with a bit of lust. "I could never, even if I tried." She answered, pulling me in for a kiss.

All games aside now, I laid us back down on to the bed as I continued to kiss her, pouring all of my feelings into her with my kiss.

She pushed me back with both hands on my head. "Open yourself up to me?"

I looked at her hesitantly. "Are-are you sure?"

She nodded her head and I could tell by her emotions that there was no trace of doubt. I took a deep breath in and as I let it out, I opened up my gift to her and let all of my emotions flow out of me. She smiled up at me and pulled me back in for a kiss with new yearning. My body ached for her in a way I never knew it could.

I began to plant soft lingering kisses down her neck, undoing the clasp on her bra as I went. She gasped as I freed them from their confines and helped her remove it down her arms, and then laid her back down. Her nipples were raised and erect and she encouraged me further with her gasps and moans as I massaged her breasts. I slowly squeezed them, cupping them.

She let out a sigh as my mouth found her nipples, caressing them gently with my tongue. Her thighs clenched together and she arched her back instinctively. She wrapped her legs around me and pushed her heat up, grinding into my hardness, enticing a moan from us both, these sensations so yearned for and yet so new to us both as they electrified our bodies. Thank you mating bond…It was always said that no sex from anyone anywhere could ever compare to that from your mate. I am now a firm believer!

I let my tongue continue to tease and torment her breasts, one at the time. She was squirming under me, all of this completely new to her, regardless.

My hands began to slide up her thighs, gently squeezing her soft skin, stroking my way upwards and slipping between them towards her innocence. She looked deep into my eyes, her pupils dilated. She slowly spread her legs outward for me as my fingers explored her as of yet undiscovered intimacies. God, she was so wet! I groaned in excitement as my fingers softly probed. The heal of my hand applied the exact amount of pressure required and her back arched a little as her breath quickened. She moaned as I massaged her, stroking her thighs, and then returning to her sensitive clit.

I moved back up from her breasts to her face, looking at her. She was so beautiful and the reality is so much better than any of my fantasies that I have had since the day I met her. I was completely engrossed in her, totally spellbound. Every time I touched her, she reacted as though it was the first time and it turned me on so hopelessly. Her hands began to explore my body, over passing my sensitive waist. Her arousal was so strong and driving me further. I grinned at her, stopping to move down her body and caressing her silky skin with my fingertips.

"I have to taste you." I whispered, my lips lightly touching her skin all the way down.

She lifted her head slightly and watched as I positioned my shoulders between her thighs. I slowly set about her thighs with my mouth and my fingers returned to her pussy. I kissed her thigh up to where it joined her hip and then slowly moved across until my teeth were nipping at the delicate fabric of her lace booty shorts. My fingers were inside them in an instant and I began to pull them down her legs. Her body was trembling with anticipation and expectation, coated with lust and excitement. She let her head fall back and let out a sigh, closing her eyes.

I watched her bite her lip as my tongue flicked back and forth over her clit with wide circular motions, feeling her pleasure as if it was my own. These are the times where I loved my gift. Waves of pleasure washed through us both, increasing as new sensations began to take over. Everything just felt so right. I was gentle, yet determined and intermittently forceful and rough. She relaxed her body and touched her body and her breasts. My hands slowly drifted up her body and took her breasts. We both began to moan, me against her clit, as the feelings became overwhelming. Slowly, but surely, the pulsating tremor shifted to a roaring throb. Then it hit. Our first orgasm, she screamed as her body shook and convulsed with sheer ecstasy. I held her close with one hand as I let out a loud groan, coming in my other hand as I began to stroke myself, catching everything that came out. I continued to hold her until she stopped shaking and her breathing returned to normal as I licked and cleaned her with my tongue. She tasted heavenly.

I grabbed a towel from the laundry bin next to the bed and cleaned myself off, then kissed my way up her body, already hard again and ready to go. I made it up to her lips and kissed her deeply, letting her taste herself on my tongue. She moaned into my mouth and shocked me as she flipped me us over, making her way down my body.

It came as some surprise when I felt her mouth close around my cock. Her tongue swept around the base of the tip and her fingers continued to stroke my shaft. I gripped the sheets, groaning, when her other hand reached down and grabbed my balls, playing with them as she bobbed up and down my dick. After enjoying the wonderful attention she was giving to me, I stopped her. I pulled her back up my body, then flipped us over and cupped her face with both of my hands.

"I really want to make love to you, darlin'." I said placing a chaste kiss on her lips.

She deepened the kiss and I felt her begin to push down my sweat pants along with my boxers. I pulled back to look at her and she bit her lip. God she was unbelievably sexy. I had to have her and I needed her now. I crashed my lips to her wildly as we lost ourselves in the moment. I took myself in my hand and slowly swept myself over her clit.

"Are you ready, baby girl?" I whispered in her ear.

She responded nervously by nodding and moaning when I pushed myself inside her. She was tight and I knew it was uncomfortable for her. I looked at her face and noticed that her eyes were closed tightly and she was holding her breath. I knew that I was very well endowed, even for a vampire, so I knew that until I broke through and she got comfortable that this was not going to be very pleasant.

"Relax Lilly, please baby, I won't hurt you, I promise." I whispered again. "Would you like me to take away some of the pain?" She hesitantly nodded. I reached out with my gift and took away as much of the actual pain as I could and pushed lust and desire towards her, leaving her with a pleasurable pain.

When she exhaled, I pushed myself in deeper, breaking through her hymen. She cried out in pleasure and pain as a tear of venom fell from her right eye. I kissed it away, holding still as I let her adjust to my size as I was fully sheathed inside her heat. After a few moments, I felt her pain completely dissipate and she bucked her hips showing that she was ready.

I slowly pulled out until only the tip was left inside of her and I thrust back inside to the hilt.

"Ugh, Jasper!" Lilly trembled and clung to my body as I began to slowly move in and out of her.

Good God, I have never felt anything like this. It was wonderful, I couldn't even describe it! I could feel our mating bond solidifying and all that was needed now was our releases and our marks.

Our hands moved all over each other's bodies and placed wet kisses anywhere we could reach. We were truly making love, not just fucking; something that I have never done before. The emotions being passed back and forth between each other was enough to bring any one to their knees. God, what pleasure could make me abandon every vestige of dignity and restraint and make me throw myself upon her, desperate to continue with the onslaught to her body.

I began to pick up the pace a little bit, pushing myself deeper inside of her and filling her more with each gentle thrust, not having to hold back because of her vampirism. She lifted her legs and wrapped them around my waist, both of us moaning at the new angle that allowed me to go deeper. She turned side to side as I felt her walls begin to flutter around me. I continued to move faster, breathing heavily on her neck, kissing her skin and squeezing her breast in my hand. I lifted myself onto my hands and looked down at my mate. Her face was filled with desire and sexual pleasure. I slipped my hand around her waist and flipped us both over.

Lilly opened her eyes and sat herself across me; slowly sinking onto me and letting her head fall back. Her own fingers began pleasuring her breasts. I watched and felt myself hurtling towards release, but I refused to cum until my mate does. I am a gentleman after all.

I grabbed her hips and pulled her down harder and she screamed out as I raised my hips, thrusting myself deeper into her. I was breathless, panting and in pain from needing the release that I was holding back, but it all felt so wonderful.

I sat up, taking her nipple into my mouth as my fingers slipped between her lips and over her clit as I helped her near her release. She rocked with abandon as my fingers continued to circle her while I bit lightly on her other nipple. I couldn't hold out much longer, but I wanted to make this last as long and as pleasurable as possible. The sight of her riding me, knowing I was her first, it was too much.

Between my gift and my ministrations, I knew it was too much for her as well. Her walls immediately clamped down on my dick as she screamed her release as her fangs grew from her gums and she leaned down and bit onto my pulse point, marking me as hers for all eternity.

As soon as her teeth made it all the way through, an enormous amount of pleasure shot through me, throwing me over the edge so fast, I couldn't have held off even if I wanted to. Never have I felt something this amazing before in all of my existence. I never knew I could even feel this way; so full of love, lust, euphoria, adoration, desire and happiness…

I roared my release, my fangs growing from my gums as I bit into her pulse point and released my mating venom. She began convulsing as the bite took her over the edge again, squeezing down on me tighter and bringing my release to another level. I growled into her neck as this happened and I felt my eyes roll into the back of my head in pure and utter bliss.

I finally released myself from her neck, pulling back and leaned my forehead on her shoulder, panting as I tried to catch my unneeded breath as she did the same, still staying buried inside of her. I held her tightly so she couldn't move, just for a minute. I needed to feel her to ensure that this was all real and not another fantasy. Then again, no fantasy could instill this much love and bliss.

Minutes passed and finally I was able to pick up my head and looked at my angel. She was absolutely glowing as she gave me a loving smile. I leaned up and kissed her soft pink lips.

"I love you." I whispered against her mouth.

"As I love you, _mon cher._" **(my dear) **She replied pulling back. "I'll never forget this moment, even if I live until the end of time."

I smiled up at her and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. She looked so beautiful after making love. "As will I." I agreed, sending her a strong bust of love.

**(Bella's POV)**

_I opened my eyes to a familiar place. Aware in some corner of my consciousness that I was dreaming, I recognized the green light of the forest. I could hear the waves crashing against the rocks somewhere nearby. And I knew that if I found the ocean, I'd be able to see the sun. I was trying to follow the sound, but then Jacob Black was there, tugging on my hand, pulling me back toward the blackest part of the forest._

"_Jacob? What's wrong?" I asked_

_His face was frightened as he yanked with all his strength against my resistance; I didn't want to go into the dark._

"_Run, Bella, you have to run!: he whispered, terrified._

"_This way, Bella!" I recognized Mike's voice calling out of the gloomy heart of the trees, but I couldn't' see him._

"_Why?" I asked, still pulling against Jacob's grasp, desperate now to find the sun._

_But Jacob let go of my hand and yelped, suddenly shaking, falling to the dim forest floor. He twitched on the ground as I watched in horror. _

"_Jacob!" I screamed. But he was gone. In his place was a large red-brown wolf with black eyes. The wolf faced away from me, pointing toward the shore, the hair on the back of his shoulders bristling, low growls issuing from between his exposed fangs. _

"_Bella, run!" Mike cried out again from behind me. But I didn't turn. I was watching a light coming towards me from the beach. _

_And then, Edward stepped out from the trees, his skin faintly glowing, his eyes black and dangerous. He held up one hand and beckoned me to come to him._

_The wolf growled at my feet._

_I took a step forward, toward Edward. He smiled then, and his teeth were sharp, pointed._

"_Trust me," he purred, pointing in the direction from where he came from. I looked to see what he was trying to show me and saw Lilly walking hand in hand with Jasper. She smiled and me, her teeth just as sharp and pointed as Edward and both of their skin faintly glowing as well, but more like a glow than sparkles. Jasper's was a little different. He was almost a mixture between Lilly and Edward, but just as beautiful._

_I took another step._

_The wolf launched himself across the space between me and the vampires, fangs aiming for the jugular._

"No!" I screamed, wrenching upright out of my bed.

My sudden movement caused the headphones to pull the CD player off the bedside table, and it clattered to the wooden floor.

My light was still on, and I was sitting fully dressed on the bed, with my shoes on. I glanced, disoriented, at the clock on my dresser. It was five-thirty in the morning.

I groaned, fell back, and rolled over onto my face, kicking off my boots. I was too uncomfortable to get anywhere near sleep, though. I rolled back over and unbuttoned my jeans, yanking them off awkwardly as I tried to stay horizontal. I could feel the braid in my hair, an uncomfortable ridge along the back of my skull.

Could the Cullen's be vampires?

But he said that there is a new one that just became a part of their coven. A brunette female with long brown hair. She sounds a lot like Lilly, but Lilly can't be a vampire. Sure, she is just as beautiful as they are, but she has light green eyes and they have golden or topaz eyes. But she has the cold skin like them. Ugh, this is so confusing. No, there is no way its Lilly. The new member must not go to school. Though the pieces do add up, except for a few things that makes everything seem like it couldn't possibly be true. Not to mention the treaty that Jacob spoke about. Wouldn't changing her violate the treaty? I haven't noticed any changes in her, unless they did it before I met her. I continued to prattle on and on in my head as I stared at the ceiling in my bedroom.

Maybe I should just ask her. Ha! Yeah right, Bella! I could picture it; me walking up to my best friend and saying 'hey, so I heard that you're a vampire. Is it true?' Yeah, that'll go over well. Especially if it turns out that she isn't a vampire. Call the men in white with nets and lock me in a padded cell!

If she isn't a vampire, does she know about the Cullen's? I mean she is dating one and has been living with them for a week now. You would think she would know, but what if she doesn't? Or maybe I am just letting my imagination run wild. I mean, Jake did say that it was just a scary. But it's such a coincidence! Man, I'm getting a headache.

I sat up, and my head spun for a minute as the blood flowed downward. First things first, I thought to myself, happy to put it off as long as possible. I grabbed my bathroom bag.

The shower didn't last nearly as long as I hoped it would, though. Even taking the time to blow-dry my hair, I was soon out of my things to do in the bathroom. Wrapped in a towel, I crossed back to my room. I couldn't tell if Charlie was still asleep, or if he had already left. I went to look out my window, and the cruiser was gone. Fishing again.

I looked up and across the street to Lilly's house, not sure why I was bothering considering I knew that no one was home.

I dressed slowly into my most comfy sweats and then made my bed – something I never did. I couldn't put it off any longer. I went to my desk and switched on my old computer.

I hated using the Internet here. My modem was sadly outdated, my free service substandard' just dialing up took so long that I decided to go get myself a bowl of cereal while I waited and brought it up to my room and set it down on my desk next to my computer. I trilled my nails on my desk as I continued to wait while I ate slowly, chewing each bite with care.

When I was done, I ran downstairs, washing the bowl and spoon, dried them, and put them away. My feet dragged as I climbed the stairs. I went to my CD player first, picking it up off the floor and placing it precisely in the center of the table. I pulled out the headphones, and put them away in the desk drawer. Then I turned the same CD on, turning it down to the point where it was background noise.

With another sigh, I turned to my computer. Naturally, the screen was covered in pop-up ads. I sat in my hard folding chair and began closing all the little windows. Eventually, I made it to my favorite search engine, Google. I shot down a few more pop-ups and then typed in one word.

Vampire.

**A/N:**** So, what did everybody think? Steamy enough of a lemon for ya? **

**If anyone has any questions of comments, post them in my reviews and I will answer them in my next Author's Note!**

**Also, if anyone has any ideas that they would like to post, I would love to hear them! I am going to be doing all 4 Twilight books, so there WILL be a Sequel! =) **

**Question for my readers: **_In the sequel, do you think that Jasper should leave Lilly in Forks after the Birthday incident, have Lilly come with them, have Jasper stay behind, or have Lilly and Jasper both go with the Cullen's, but keep in touch secretly with Bella?__ If you have another idea instead of these ones, feel free to post it and I will consider it!_

**I have posted a new story that I am working on called ****'The Heart's Desire'**** Check it out and let me know what you think!**

**I am also currently accepting Twilight stories involving Jasper/any female lead or Bella/selected male leads for anyone who needs a Beta Reader! I will make exceptions on the characters depending on the plot! PM me for further details!**

_-Bella'Xo  
><em>**Xo BellaItalia oX**


	17. Chapter 14

**Disclaimer. ****All publicly recognizable characters, settings etc., are the property of their respective owners. The original characters, ideas and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended. I only do this for fun. –B**

**Chapter 14  
><strong>**(Bella's POV)**

Could Lilly and the Cullen's be vampires?

One thing was for sure, they were something. Something outside the possibility of rational justification was taking place in front of my incredulous eyes. Whether it be Jacob's cold ones or my own superhero theory, Edward was not…human. He was something more. They all were.

So then – maybe. That would have to be my answer for now.

Now for the most important question of all; what was I going to do if it was true?

I began to think out my options, but only two seemed to be practical. Either take his advice: to be smart and avoid him as much as possible; to cancel our plans, to go back to ignoring him as far as I was able.

But what about Lilly? And why was I suddenly gripped in agony and despair at the mirror thought to that alternative? My mind rejected the pain, quickly skipping on to the next option. She was my best friend, the only one I could really talk to in this dense little town and Edward…was Edward. He had my heart.

I could do nothing different. The past two days at school, he had invited me to sit with him alone at a table for lunch and I have gotten to know him better than I had and learned that his best friend was Lilly as well.

Surely if the Cullen's were something sinister, she would not have continued to associate herself with them and agree to be changed into one of them. If he hadn't acted so quickly, I would be nothing more than a dent in Tyler's fender. I argued with myself, that it might have been sheer reflexes. But if it was a reflex to save lives, how bad could he be; could any of them be?

There was a lot that I wasn't sure about, but one thing that I did know for sure of was that the dark Edward in my dream last night was a reflection only of my fear of the word Jacob had spoken, and not Edward himself. Even so, when I'd screamed out in terror at the werewolf's lunge, it wasn't fear for the wolf that brought the cry of 'no' to my lips. It was fear that he would be harmed – that they would be harmed. Even as he called to me with sharp-edged fangs, I feared for him.

It was then that I knew that I had my answer. I didn't know if there was ever a choice, really. I was already in too deep. Now that I knew – if I knew – I could do nothing about my frightening secret. Because when I thought of him, of his voice, his hypnotic eyes, the magnetic force of his personality, I wanted nothing more than to be with him right now. Even if…but I couldn't think of it. Not here, as I took a walk alone in the darkening forest. Not while the rain made it dim as twilight under the canopy and pattered like footsteps across the matted earthen floor.

**(Lilly's POV)**

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Charlotte." I said as I smiled at Jasper's friends from his time with Maria.

"Family call's me Char, sug. It's great to meet you too!" Char said hugging me. "I'm so happy that our Major here has finally found his mate!"

"Thank you. I'm happy I have him as well." I said smiling adoringly at my Jasper.

He returned my smile, and then gestured to the sandy blond standing next to Char.

"And this is Char's mate, Peter."

"It's wonderful to meet the ones who saved my Jasper from the South." I smiled gratefully holding out my hand for him to shake.

"It's an honor to meet you as well, sweetheart." Peter smirked as he took my hand and placed a soft kiss to the back of my hand as he kept his eyes locked with mine.

"Enough Peter!" Jasper growled in a threatening matter.

"You know, the Wifey and I would love to have you in our bed for the night if you're interested?" He pressed wiggling his eyebrows as he ignored Jasper's threat.

"CAPTAIN!" Jasper snarled, pushing me behind him while keeping his hand on my waist.

It was then that Peter looked away from me and back at Jasper. He looked panicked for a moment and immediately stepped back; pushing Charlotte behind him like Jasper had done with me and put his head down in a submissive gesture, Charlotte doing the same.

I was confused for a moment until Jasper turned to look at me. It was then that I noticed that his eyes were pitch black. He stood talker, straighter, and kept his hands clasped behind his back. His entire aura had changed and he had a dangerous demeanor that just radiated superiority, dominance, the Alpha. I knew right then that this was not my Jasper. This was his alter ego, the vampire side of his that always seemed to lurk just behind his eyes. I knew that it the Major that I had been told about and not their demon, the God of War. Jasper had told me all about the three sides to him and what they were like and what to do when I met them for any reason.

I decided that the best thing to do would be to play it safe and show submission just like Peter and Char were doing. So I bowed my head, bearing my neck on the side that showed his mating mark and kept my eyes to the floor.

"Captain, Lieutenant." I heard him greet them. I also noticed that his southern accent is stronger as the Major. It was actually quite sexy.

"Major." The both echoed.

"I will only say this once an' if I have ta repeat myself, I will punish whoever does not heed my warnin'." He threatened. I heard his boots hit the floor as he circled them. They were the only part of him I could see. "Lillian or Lilith, as her inner vampire is called, is _my_ mate." How did he know about Lilith, I wondered? I never told him or anybody about my alter ego that would come forth during emotional experiences. She is a lot like the Major in some ways from what I have seen and heard of him so far. She demands respect and is very cocky. She dresses a lot more risqué than I do and completely in black and red.

I listened as the Major continued with his threat. "She is only MINE an' I will not tolerate anyone else bein' with my mate in that fashion. I do not share what's mine. I know ya can't help the pull she has over ya because of her gift, but yer gonna have ta deal. I'll over look yer emotions towards her because of who ya are, but that's what they will remain; emotions, not actions. Am I clear?"

"Yes sir." The replied.

"Good." The Major responded. "You are dismissed. The doctor and his family will be back from their hunting trip within the hour. I must also demand that when you hunt, you continue to hunt outside of Forks, preferably in Seattle or out of state. Go ahead and get settled in one of the guest rooms."

"Yes sir, thank you sir." They said before disappearing up the stairs to one of the guest rooms.

It was quiet for a moment before I heard the Major's boots echo through the house as he slowly circled me. I kept my head down and bore my neck in submission and respect and stayed quiet until I was told.

After a he made a full circle around me, he stopped dead in front of me. He released one of his hands from behind his back and I felt his fingers lightly ghost over my mating mark.

A few seconds later, he moved his fingers to under my chin as he tilted my head up to look at him in the eyes. They were still the onyx eyes of the Major as he looked at me. He dropped his hand from my face, holding it out in front of him.

"Hello Lillian." He greeted me. "You know who I am?"

I nodded. "Yes I do, indeed." I smiled timidly placing my hand in his. "It's nice to meet you, Major."

He smirked as he brought my hand to his lips in a seductive manor. "The pleasure is mine, my mate." He said placing a chaste kiss on the back of my hand.

We chatted for a bit on the couch as he held me close, occasionally kissing me, but not getting too carried away considering the family would be back soon. He was so different from Jasper, but I loved him all the same.

He looked up at the clock and frowned, then turned back to me apologetically.

"I'm sorry, my dear. It appears that it's time for me to retreat." He said placing a chaste kiss on my mating mark. "I am sure that I will see you again soon, but if you ever need me, just tell Jasper and he will relinquish control to me."

I gave him a sad smile and nodded my understanding. "It really was great to meet you."

He snorted. "Yeah, because everyone wants to meet a monster."

"You're no monster." I cupped his jaw. "You're my Major and I love you." I confessed.

His eyebrows shot up in surprise and he looked as if he wasn't sure what to say.

"You…love me?" He asked. I gave him a small smile and nodded my head. "Why? I'm not Jasper."

"No, you're not, but you are a part of him and I love every part of the both of you." I confessed.

The only response I got was the Major slamming his lips to mine and devouring my mouth with his tongue and lips. I responded eagerly as I pushed everything I felt about him towards him so that he could feel it for himself. In return, he released the dam on his emotions and let me feel everything he was feeling at that point in time.

Shock.  
>Awe.<br>Joy.  
>Adoration.<br>Lust.  
>Love.<p>

I smiled against his lips and he pulled back a bit so he could look in to my eyes.

"I love you too, Lillian." He whispered, then leaned in and kissed me again.

This time when he pulled back, the red was back in his eyes and I knew right then that I was looking back at my Jasper.

"Welcome back, honey." I grinned at him.

"Thank you." He chuckled. "I trust the Major was good to you?" He asked.

I smiled fondly at the memory of my first encounter with Jasper's vampire and nodded. "He was wonderful." I said and began to tell him of everything that had happened while he was gone.

"But what I don't understand is how he knew about Lilith?" I asked.

"She is his mate as are you. He could feel her presence under your surface as you can see mine." He explained. "I wasn't aware that you had an alter ego like I did, but I always suspected it. I can see her behind your eyes as I can see the Major behind mine. I figured that if I was right, she would introduce herself at some point. As for how he knew her name, you'll have to ask him." He shrugged.

I nodded to myself in understanding but didn't say anything more on the subject.

Minutes later, the front door opened and the family began to pile into the house.

"Hey guys!" Alice greeted us as she danced into the living room, followed by Carlisle and Esme.

"Hi Alice." I laughed.

Carlisle and Esme greeted us as well and asked about our night before Carlisle said that he would be right back, and that he just needed to answer a page from the hospital.

"Greetings love birds!" Emmett boomed dragging Rosalie into the room passing Carlisle as them came. "We're planning on going to play some football and you guys better be in!"

Jasper looked at me and I could see the excitement in his eyes. I could tell he really wanted to play and who was I to deny him? I smiled as I nodded my head. He grinned and pecked me quickly on the lips in thanks, then turned back to Emmett.

"We're in!" He answered.

"Awesome!" He fist pumped him. "Peter and Char gonna play too, right?"

"You bet!" Peter answered as him and Char entered the living room and greeted the family.

"What about Edward?" I asked as I looked around, not seeing him in sight.

"Uh…I don't think he's gonna come." Emmett said rubbing the back of his neck. "I'll leave a note for him just in case he decides to come so he knows where we are."

"Where is he?" Jasper asked rubbing circles on my hip bone with his thumb.

"Take a guess." Rose growled in annoyance.

"Oh, he's watching Bella again, isn't he?" I asked.

"Who's Bella?" Char asked.

"A human that he seems to be obsessed with." Rose answered rolling her eyes.

"Why is he watching a human?" Peter asked in surprise.

"Because he's an idiot!" Rose snorted.

"Rosalie!" Esme warned.

"He's in love with her." Alice said sticking up for her brother.

"In love with a human? That sucks!" He chuckled.

"He's even stalking the poor girl and watches her sleep!" Emmett added. "It's weird."

"Well why don't you call him and tell him to take a break from stalking and come play some football?" Peter asked crossing his arms over his chest.

"You could, but he will decline." Alice answered for him. "He's extremely protective over her and with you guys visiting; he won't leave her for long. No offense to you two or anything, but he's just an overprotective fool."

"None taken." Char smiled.

"Alright, enough talk about Eddie!" Emmett interrupted. "Let's go play some ball!"

**(Edward's POV)  
><strong>_***Italics**_** – What he reads in someone's mind***

I did not see much of Jasper's guests since they have arrived. I only went home at all so that Esme wouldn't worry and even then I was only there for short spurts of time. Lilly would occasionally accompany me to give me someone to talk to about everything and she gave me a lot of confidence. I appreciated her friendship more and more every day. She had one of the kindest minds I had ever heard and was incredibly intelligent on almost every subject I brought up.

Monday came around and I was sad that the whole family, including Lilly, were held prisoner inside because of the sun. I hovered, invisible in the shadows, where I could follow the object of my love and obsession – where I could see her and hear her in the minds of the lucky humans who could walk through the sunlight beside her. It made me jealous of their humanity and how they didn't have to worry about the things that I do.

The enforced absence from school had never been a trial like this before. But the sun seemed to make her happy, so I could not resent it too much. Anything that pleased her was in my good graces.

I eavesdropped on a conversation that had the potential to destroy my new found confidence and make the time spent away from her a torture. As it ended up, though, it rather made my day.

Bella got to school quite early and, seeming intent on enjoying the sun while it lasted and sat at one of the seldom used picnic benches while she waited for the first bell to ring. Her hair caught the sun in unexpected ways, giving off a reddish shine that I had not noticed before. It was rather pretty.

Mike found her there, doodling in her notebook and was thrilled at his good luck.

It was agonizing to only be able to watch, powerless and bound to the forest's shadows by the bright sunlight.

She greeted him with enough enthusiasm to make him ecstatic and me the opposite as I growled low in my throat.

_See, she likes me. She wouldn't smile like that if she didn't. I bet she wanted to go to the dance with me. Wonder what's so important in Seattle…_

He perceived the change the sunlight made in her hair.

"I never noticed before – your hair has red in it."

I accidentally uprooted the young spruce tree my hand was resting on when he pinched a strand of her hair between his fingers. Maybe I can call Lilly here and….nah….never mind.

"Only in the sun." She said and cringed away from him slightly when he tucked the strand behind her ear. I satisfied me greatly that she was repulsed by his touch.

It took Mike a minute to build up his courage, wasting some time on small talk. My teeth were clenched so hard they could have pulverized granite. Even then, he couldn't make himself ask the question outright. It really made me reconsider calling Lilly to use her gift on him to keep him away from her.

"I was going to ask if you wanted to go out."

"Oh," she said followed by a brief silence.

_Oh? What does that mean? Is she going to say yes? Wait – I guess I didn't really ask._

He swallowed hard before continuing.

"Well, we could go to dinner or something…?"

_Stupid – that wasn't a question either._

"Mike…"

The agony and fury of my jealousy was every bit as powerful as it had been last week. I broke another tree trying to hold myself there instead of charging across the campus at vampire speed and snatching her up, stealing her away from the stupid boy that I hated so much in this moment. I could have killed him and enjoyed it tremendously.

"I don't think that would be the best idea." She answered and I let out the breath that I didn't realize I had been holding in suspense of her answer as my entire body began to relax from my tense position.

_Seattle was just an excuse, after all. I shouldn't have asked. What was I thinking? I bet it's that freak, Cullen…_

"Why?" He asked with disappointment evident in his expression.

"I think…" She hesitated. It was times like this that I really wished I could hear what she was thinking. "And if you ever repeat what I'm saying right now, I will cheerfully beat you to death –" I laughed out loud at the sound of a death threat coming through her lips. "- But I think that would hurt Jessica's feelings."

I sighed shaking my head. I knew where this was going. Bella was forever trying to spare disappointment and hurt from others and it was a quality that I loved about her, regardless of how frustrating it can be sometimes.

"Jessica?"

_What?_ _But…Oh. Okay. I guess… So… Huh._

His thoughts were no longer coherent.

"Really, Mike, are you blind?" She asked raising an eyebrow in question.

I mean, she really shouldn't expect people to be as perceptive as she was, but really, in this instance it was beyond obvious. With as much trouble as Mike had had working himself to ask Bella out, did he imagine it wasn't just as difficult for Jessica? It must be selfishness that made him so blind to others. And Bella was so unselfish, she saw everything.

_Jessica. Huh. Wow. Huh. _

"Oh." He managed to squeak out.

Bella used his confusion to make her exit.

"It's time for class, and I can't be late again." She said excusing herself and leaving a dumb struck Mike behind.

After school I went straight to her home and did a quick sweep of the woods to make sure no one dangerous had wandered too close. I knew Jasper had warned his Peter to avoid the town – citing my insanity as both explanation and warning – but I wasn't going to take any chances when it comes to Bella. I knew that Peter and Charlotte had no desire what so ever to cause any trouble with my family, but intentions were changeable things…

Alright, I was overdoing it and I knew it. Even Alice and Lilly both had this conversation with me and I should know that Lilly wouldn't risk Bella any more than I would and Alice would never lie to me about her visions regarding my Bella.

When her father came home that evening, I listened to her tell him about her plans to go to Port Angeles as I refined my own plans to match hers. Though I knew that Peter and Charlotte had recently red and had no intention of hunting anywhere near our home, I would watch her, just in case. After all, there were always others of my kind out there. Not to mention all of those human dangers that I had never even considered until now.

Bella did not sleep as well tonight. She thrashed in her blankets and her face sometimes worried, sometimes sad. I wondered what nightmare was haunting her and then realized that perhaps I really didn't want to know.

When she spoke, she mostly muttered derogatory things about Forks in a glum voice. Only once when she sighed out the words 'come back' and her hand twitched open – a wordless plea – did I have a chance to hope she might be dreaming of me.

The next day of school, the last day that the sun would hold all of us prisoner, was much the same as the day before. It made me wonder if she was going to bow out of her plans tonight, but knowing Bella, she would put her friend's enjoyment before her own.

During lunch, I watched as she kept looking around for me and my siblings (I now included Lilly as family). Jessica had caught her looking and immediately went on to explain about us all being pulled out of school whenever the weather was nice to go camping and hiking and how we probably took Lilly with us. It was the first time all day I saw actual interest cross her face as she listened to Jessica prattle on.

School ended and Jessica agreed to pick her and Angela up. I went to get my car and when I got home, I saw that Peter and Charlotte were still there. I decided that I could afford to give the girls an hour or so head start. There was no way that I could bear to follow the girls as they drove the speed limit. I shivered at the thought and quickly shook it off.

I came through the kitchen, nodding my greetings to both Esme and Emmett going straight for the piano.

_Ugh, he's back._

Rosalie…of course. Never has anything positive to think about concerning myself or Bella as of late.

_Ah, Edward. I hate to see him suffering so._

Esme's joy was becoming marred by concern. She should be concerned! This 'love story' she kept envisioning between Bella and I was turning towards a tragedy more and more every moment!

_Have fun in Port Angeles tonight!_ Alice thought cheerfully. _Let me know when I can finally talk to Bella!_

_You're pathetic. I can't believe you missed the game the other night just to watch some chick sleep._

Emmett. I shook my head at that, knowing he would never understand, so why bother trying to explain it.

Jasper paid me no mind, even when the song I played came out a little more stormily than I'd intended. His thoughts were always on Lilly as hers were on him like most newly mated pairs, but she spared me a smile and a hello as she joked around with Peter as she sat in Jasper's arms.

The song I was playing was an old song, with a familiar theme: impatience. Jasper was saying goodbye to his friends, who eyed me curiously.

_What a strange creature._ Charlotte thought. _And he was so normal and pleasant the last time we met._

Peter's thoughts were in sync with hers, but a little more vulgar. This was usually the case with him.

_It must be the animals. The lack of human blood drives them mad eventually. I'm sure glad he's following Lilly's example when it comes to diets. _

Everyone but Esme stopped thinking about me after a moment, and I played in more subdued tones so that I would not attract notice as I tried to loose myself in the music.

**(Jasper's POV)**

"If you see Maria again," I warned Peter as I pulled Lilly tighter to my chest. "Let me know. I know she is itching to have me back down there and leading her army and I don't want any surprise visits now that I have Lilly to worry about."

"I don't imagine that will happen soon," Peter laughed. "But, should it happen, I certainly will, brother."

We shook hands as they were preparing to depart as we heard Edward trailing off at the end of the song he was playing and jump hastily to his feet.

"Charlotte, Peter," He said, nodding in greeting.

"It was nice to see you again, Edward." Charlotte said doubtfully as Peter just nodded in return.

Edward stood there briefly and I could tell that he was listening to something Alice was telling him via her thoughts. Finally, he nodded and swiftly flitted out the door, jumping in to his car.

"Where is he going?" Emmett asked.

"Probably to Port Angeles." Lilly answered.

"How do you know?" Rose asked genuinely curious.

"Because Bella already called last night and asked if I wanted to go with her, Jess and Angela, but I told her that we extended our camping trip, but I would next time." She said.

"So you're friends with this human too?" Peter asked, raising an eyebrow in surprise.

"Yes." She laughed as his expression. "She is actually my best girlfriend.

"Hey!" All three girls cried.

"What? You guys aren't my friends. You are my sisters." She shrugged with a smile.

Rose and Alice smiled triumphantly and Char pulled her out of my arms and into a tight embrace.

"I'm going to miss you so much." Char said then pulled back. "Make sure you two come and visit us in Texas soon!"

"We will over the summer, promise!" Lilly swore.

"I'm going to miss you as well, jelly bean." Peter said pulling her in to a hug of his own. "I'm so happy to have gotten to know ya."

"Me too, Pete." She smiled as she pulled back and whipped a stray tear the fell down her cheek.

"God, I'm never going to get used to the fact that you're a quarter human." He said shaking his head in amazement.

Lilly laughed at the same time as a strangled sob came from her lips and I pulled her back to me and sent her a wave of calm and love, letting her know I was here. She had gotten very close with my first family and she had gotten under their skin as well. The fact that she could find something with everyone to bond over was something that I loved about her and her ability to care about them as much as she does.

The whole family, excluding Edward, followed Peter and Char to the porch and we said our final good byes along with well wishes as they disappeared into the night.

**A/N:**** So Lilly has an alter ego as well name Lilith and the Major finally made his first appearance…What did you guys think? I hope you all enjoyed this chapter!**

**If you have questions or comments, post them in my reviews and I will answer any questions in my next Author's Note. **

**Like I asked in my last author's note, **

_In the sequel when Edward makes the family leave, what should I have Lilly do? _

**Post your idea's in my reviews for this story and all of the upcoming ones as well. Yes, I am going to do a story for each book. =) *Hint Hint***

**I have posted a new story that I am working on called ****'The Heart's Desire'**** Check it out and let me know what you think!**

**Also, like I tell you guys every time…**

**I am also currently accepting Twilight stories involving Jasper/any female lead or Bella/selected male leads for anyone who needs a Beta Reader! I will make exceptions on the characters depending on the plot! PM me for further details!  
><strong>_Bella'Xo  
><em>**Xo BellaItalia oX**


	18. Chapter 15

**Disclaimer. ****All publicly recognizable characters, settings etc., are the property of their respective owners. The original characters, ideas and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended. I only do this for fun. –B**

**Chapter 15  
><strong>**(Edward's POV)**

I couldn't find her anywhere.

I got back in the car and drove slowly through the streets of Port Angeles, looking for her. I stepped out into a few patches of shadows, but I only caught her scent once more before it disappeared as if she was constantly changing direction. She was confusing the heck out of me. Where was she trying to go? Was she lost?

I drove back and forth between the bookstore and the restaurant a few times, hoping to see her on her way. Jessica and Angela were already there, trying to decide whether to order, or to wait for Bella. Jessica was pushing for ordering immediately. I hated that Bella and her were friends. She was such a fake friend, always thinking the worst of Bella.

I began flitting through the minds of strangers, looking through their eyes in search of my chocolate eyed girl. Surely, someone must have seen her somewhere, somehow. She was wandering all over the place from where her scent was leading me.

I became more and more anxious the longer she was missing. I couldn't help but think the worst and it wasn't helping my predicament. I hadn't considered before how difficult she might prove finding even once, like now; she was out of my sight and of her normal paths. I didn't like it. Not one bit.

The clouds were massing on the horizon, and in a few more minutes, I would be free to track her on foot. It wouldn't take me long to find her then. It was only the sun that was making me so helpless now. I couldn't risk being spotted sparkling in the sun and risking exposure. Just a few more minutes and then the advantage would be mine again and it would be the human world that would be at a disadvantage.

One mind after the next and nothing…

…_think the baby has another ear infection…_

_My boss has been driving me insane…_

_Late again…I ought to give him a piece of my…_

_Here she comes! Aha! – _There, at last! I can see her face in this person's mind.

My relief was only momentarily as I read further into the thoughts of the man who was looking at my Bella. His mind was a stranger to me, and yet, not totally unfamiliar. I had once hunted the owners of such minds and vulgar thoughts.

"NO!" I roared and a volley of snarls erupted from deep inside of my chest and throat.

I slammed my foot on to the gas pedal, flooring it and pushing my car to go faster. But where was I going? I knew the general location of his thoughts, but the knowledge was not specific enough. I needed a street sign, or a land mark that would guide me in the right direction. The only thing that I was seeing was Bella in the shadows near an empty area as he focused on her frightened expression – enjoying the fear that was radiating off of her in waves.

Her face was blurred in his mind by the memory of other faces of young girls, proving that Bella was not his first victim. The sound of my growls shook the frame of the car, but did not detour me from my mission. There were no windows in the wall that was behind her. She was far away from the more populated shopping districts.

The wheels of my car squealed as I swerved around the corner and past another vehicle. I only hoped that I was heading in the right direction.

_Look at her shaking! _The man chuckled in anticipation. He was drawn to their fear and was the part he enjoyed the most.

"Stay away from me." She demanded in a slow and steady voice. Why doesn't she scream? Draw some attention? Do something to tell me that I am headed in the right direction!

"Don't be like that, sugar." She flinched at his voice as a rowdy laugh came from another direction.

_Shut up, Jeff._ He thought to himself, but he admitted to enjoying the way she cringed. It excited him to no end and he began to picture her begging and pleading with him.

I hadn't realized that there were other's involved until I heard the loud laughter of the man he called 'Jeff.' I widened my range, trying to pick up something from one of the other men that were stalking her, praying that they would give me something useful.

The minds around him were not half as bad and vulgar as his was. They were all slightly drunk or high and not aware of how far the man they called 'Lonnie' was prepared to take this. He only promised them a little fun, but they were not expecting this.

One of the men glanced nervously down the street, not wanting to get caught harassing the poor girl. As he did this, he gave me exactly what I was looking for. I recognized the cross street that he was looking towards.

I flew through a red light and slid through a space just wide enough between two unmoving cars that were sitting in traffic. Horns began to blare at me and my phone began to vibrate in my pocket, but I ignored it for now. I had more pressing matters to deal with.

Lonnie began to slowly stalk towards Bella, loving how he was drawing out the suspense and giving her time for her fear to increase. The terror aroused him and he wanted to savor her screams. He was preparing for it anxiously.

But Bella locked her jaw and braced herself, her hands making fists at her sides. This surprised Lonnie. He expected her to try to run or try to talk her way out of what was coming to her. It was slightly disappointing to him. He liked the way he was used to things; the hunt, the chase, the torture, the killer blow.

_Brave, this one. Maybe better, I guess…there'll be more fight in her._

I was only one more block away. The savage could hear the roar of my engine, but paid it no mind, too intent on his victim. I would like to see how he enjoyed the game when he was the prey instead of the hunter. It would be interesting to see what he thought of my style of hunting. I smirked at the thought.

I was already sorting through all of the different ways I could draw out his torture. I knew of many ways to inflict the most pain with the least amount of physical damage. After hunting enough psychopaths in my vigilante days, I knew of many different methods and styles of making this bastard pay for all he has done to those young girls he keeps thinking back to. Not to mention what he intended to do to my sweet innocent Isabella. The others would merely die for their part in this, but the monster who called himself 'Lonnie' would be begging for death long before the time I got through with him.

He was now in the street making his way towards her.

I spun sharply around one last corner causing my headlights to shine across the scene and causing everyone to freeze in place. I briefly thought about running Lonnie over, but that would be way too easy of a death for a scum bag like him.

I let the car spin out and fish tail, swinging all the way around so that I was facing the opposite direction of Bella and the men. I threw the passenger door wide open and saw the she was already running towards my car.

"GET IN!" I snarled.

_What the hell?_

_I knew this was a bad idea! She's not alone._

_Should I run?_

_I think I'm going to throw up…_

Bella jumped into the car without a second thought and slamming the door shut behind her. She looked up at me with the most trusting expression on her beautiful face that I have ever seen on a human, making all of my plans for revenge crumble. Shit…

It was then that I knew that I could not leave her in the car while I dealt with the four men who were still standing shocked in the street.

What was I supposed to do, tell her not to watch? Ha! Yeah right! When has she ever listened to anything I have ever asked her to do? Why would this be any different?

Maybe I could drag them away out of her line of sight and leave her alone in the car? The chances that another dangerous human would come along were slim to none. Then again, she was a magnet for danger. No…I could not, would not, let her out of my line of sight.

I slammed my foot on the gas before I had time to change my mind, leaving her pursuers standing with their mouths agape in the street. There was no way that she would notice my indecision. She would assume that this was part of the plan all along.

I couldn't even hit them with my car without frightening her!

My God, I wanted him dead by my hands more than anything right now. I wanted to do it so badly that the need for it clouded my sight and rang loudly in my ears. I could even taste it on my tongue. My entire body was coiled and tense, begging me to turn the car around and finish him off. I needed to do this. I would peal the skin off of his muscles and then the muscles from his bones. I wanted to slowly tear off his limbs and bask in his screams.

Except for that girl…the girl who was clinging to her seat with both hands and staring intently at me with wide eyes that were still utterly and unmistakably trusting…Damnit! Vengeance will have to wait.

"Put your seatbelt on." I ordered her sternly. My voice was full of malice and blood lust. Not for her, but for _Lonnie_.

She locked her seatbelt into place and jumped slightly at the sound it made when it clicked into place. It amused me how that little sound could make her jump, but she seemed fine as I swerved my way through traffic as I ignored all the traffic guides.

She was still staring at me, but she was strangely relaxed. Why is she so calm after all she has been through so far tonight?

"Are you okay?" she asked, her voice filled with stress and fear.

She wanted to know if _I_ was okay? This girl just doesn't make sense.

I didn't even need to think about my answer as I looked at her briefly and said "No."

I parked in the same lot that I was in earlier when I spent the afternoon engaged in the poorest surveillance ever kept; especially by a vampire. It was not extremely dark under the shade of the trees.

I was so furious that I sat there completely frozen and utterly motionless. I ached to go back and track down Lonnie to instill the pain and suffering on to him that he had inflicted on to all of those girls. His identification would remain a mystery by the time I was done with him. But once again, that would entail leaving Bella alone, unprotected in the dark night.

"Bella?" I asked through my clenched teeth.

"Yes?" She responded in a husky tone, but quickly cleared her throat.

"Are you all right?" That was my top priority. Retribution and vengeance were secondary. My head knew this, but my body was having trouble agreeing.

"Yes." She replied, her voice still think with what was most likely fear.

That answered the question that I was battling. I could not leave her. Even if she wasn't at constant risk for some infuriating reason – some joke the universe insisted on playing on me – even if I could be sure that she would be perfectly safe in my absence, I could no leave her alone in the dark.

God, she must be so scared.

If I don't calm myself down and soon, I would end up frightening her even more. I needed to think about something else…anything else.

"Distract me, please?" I pleaded with her.

"I'm sorry, what did you say?" She asked surprised by my question.

"Just prattle on about something unimportant and meaningless until I calm down." I instructed, having a hard time doing even that. My jaw was still locked shut and I could still hear the man's thoughts; his disappointment, his anger. I knew where to find him.

I closed my eyes, taking in deep unnecessary breaths as I tried to block everything except for Bella out of my head.

"Um…" She hesitated as she tried to think of something to talk about. "I'm going to run over Tyler Crowley tomorrow before school?" She said this like a question.

I chuckled internally. Only Bella could come up with something as unexpected as this. Like I thought earlier, hearing the threat of violence was hilarious coming from her lips. If I was not in such a violent mood, I would have laughed.

"Why?" I snapped, trying to force her to speak again.

"He's telling everyone that he's taking me to prom." She said in outrage. She reminded me of an angry kitten. "Either he's insane, hit his head too hard during the accident, or he's still trying to make up for almost killing me last…well, you remember it," she inserted dryly, "and he thinks prom is somehow the correct way to do this. So I figure if I endanger his life, then we're even, and he can't keep trying to make amends. I don't need enemies and maybe Lauren would back off if he just left me alone. I might have to total his Sentra though," she when on in a thoughtful tone. "If he doesn't have a ride, then he can't take anyone to prom…"

Ah, it was working. The baffling processes of her mind were always so engrossing. I could feel myself beginning to gain control over my body once again.

"Oh yeah, I heard about that." I told her. I still needed her talking.

"You did?" She asked incredulously. He voice became angrier than before. "If he's paralyzed from the neck down, he can't go to prom either."

A moment of silence passed between us as I thought only on her and what she was saying.

I sighed and opened my eyes.

"Better?" she timidly asked.

"Not really."

No, I was definitely calmer, but not better in the least. Because I'd just realized that as much as I wanted to end the monster named Lonnie's life, I couldn't. Even though I could not have Bella, just the dream of having her made it impossible for me to go on a killing spree tonight. She deserved much better than a killer. I'd spent seven decades trying to be something other than that; anything other than a killer. I was trying to be good enough for her, but it was an impossible goal. However, I'd keep trying.

"What's wrong?" she whispered.

Her breath filled my nose, and I was reminded why I could not deserve her. After all of this, even with as much I loved her…she still made my mouth water. I would give her as much honesty as I could. I owed her that much.

"Sometimes I have a problem with my temper, Bella." I answered as I stared straight ahead through the front windshield and into the blackness of the night. "But it wouldn't be helpful for me to turn around and hunt down those…" I stopped that thought short, not wanting to let my thoughts go down that path again. "At least, that's what I'm trying to convince myself."

"Oh."

She said nothing else. How much had she heard in my words? I glanced at her face, but it remained unreadable. Was she in shock? Well, she wasn't screaming. Not yet.

"Jessica and Angela will be worried," she said quietly. Her voice was as calm as could be and it confused me that she could still be so calm after everything she had just been through tonight. Maybe the events just haven't sunk in yet. "I was supposed to meet them."

I didn't answer her, but started the car and took her back.

I pulled in front of the Italian restaurant that I traced them to earlier on and shut off the car.

"How did you know where…" Her unfinished question made me realize that I had made yet another slip. I'd been too distracted with my own thoughts that I forgot to ask her where she was supposed to meet her friends. But instead of pressing the matter further, she just shook her head and gave me a half smile.

What was that supposed to mean?

I didn't have time to puzzle over her strange acceptance of my knowledge. I opened my door and walked around the car to where she was now standing outside of the car.

"What are you doing?" She asked, sounding abet startled.

Not wanting to let her out of my sight and not allowing myself to be alone at the present time, I gave her my answer.

"I'm taking you to dinner."

**(Bella's POV)**

****_*Time lapse*_

"Burned by the sun?"

"Myth."

"Sleeping in coffins?"

"Myth." He hesitated for a moment, and a peculiar tone entered his voice. "I can't sleep."

It took me a minute to absorb that.

"At all?" I asked incredulously.

"Never." He answered his voice nearly inaudible. He turned to look at me with a wistful expression. His golden eyes held mine and I lost all train of thought. I continued to hold his gaze until he looked away and broke the spell.

"You haven't asked me the most important question, yet." His voice turned hard and when he turned to look at me to see my expression, I saw that his eyes had also turned cold.

I blinked, still dazed from our staring contest. "Which one is that?"

"You aren't concerned about my diet?" he asked sarcastically.

"Oh," I murmured, "that."

"Yes, that." His voice was bleak. "Don't you want to know if I drink blood?"

I flinched. "Well, Jacob said something about that."

"What did Jacob say?" He asked with his voice void of emotion.

"He said you didn't…hunt people. He said your family wasn't supposed to be dangerous, because you only hunted animals."

"He said we weren't dangerous?" His voice was deeply skeptical.

"Not exactly. He said that you weren't _supposed_ to be dangerous. But the Quileute's still didn't want you on their land, just in case. Except, he said that they were still deliberating about allowing the newest member to your coven onto the rez." I paused and looked up at him. His eyes remained forward, but I couldn't tell if he was watching the road or not. "So, was he right? About not hunting people?" I tried to keep my voice as even as possible.

"The Quileutes have a long memory," He whispered. "But they didn't tell you the whole truth."

"So you do hunt humans." I mumbled.

"No, I don't." He paused and looked at me quickly before turning his attention back on the road. He seemed to be debating on whether or not to say something.

"But some of your family does." It wasn't a question.

"In a way." He confirmed.

I gave him a puzzled look.

"That doesn't make any sense." I shook my head confused.

He let out a long sigh in an exasperated manner. "Two members of my family have very complicated gifts. They require a lot of strength and power." He answered cryptically.

"Animals aren't enough?"

He paused. "I can't be sure, of course, but I'd compare it to living on tofu and soy milk; we call ourselves vegetarians, our little inside joke. It doesn't completely satiate the hunger – or rather thirst. But it keeps us strong enough to resist, most of the time." His tone turned ominous. "Sometimes it's more difficult than others."

"Is it very difficult for you now?" I asked.

He sighed. "Yes."

"But you're not hungry now," I said confidently – stating, not asking.

"Why do you think that?"

"Your eyes. I told you I had a theory. I've noticed that people – men in particular – are crabbier when they're hungry."

He chuckled. "You are observant, aren't you?"

I didn't answer, but waited for him to continue my question from earlier. He seemed to notice this and went on to continue with his explanation.

"Animal blood doesn't keep us at our strongest. Compared to human drinkers, we are weaker and if you add a powerful gift to the mix, it makes us even weaker, but strong enough to survive.

"One of our family members has a very powerful gift and was strictly a human drinker until very recently when she joined our family. But in order for her to keep her strength and gift from draining her, she has to drink human blood at least once a month. We are able to get her donated blood instead of hunting straight from the source and the rest of the time she drinks animal blood, so you have no reason to fear her."

"And the other member?" I asked, remembering that he said there was one other family member that shared that diet.

"The other one that drinks donated blood once a month is an empath, meaning he can feel and control the emotions of others."

"Wow." I said in astonishment.

"You see, the thing about vampires is that blood lust is an emotion as well. When he is living with seven other vampires, he can feel their blood lust on top of his own. He needs to keep his gift as strong as he can so that he can block out the blood lust around him when he needs to so he doesn't slip. The donated blood allows him to keep his gift strong enough to accomplish this. Understand?"

"Yes." I nodded. "Can I ask who they are? These family members that drink human blood?"

He didn't answer for a moment and kept looking at me out of the side of his eyes.

"Lilly and Jasper." He answered.

I gasped. "I knew she was one of you." He nodded. "Did you guys change her? Did -"

"Bella," He interrupted, and then paused and took a deep breath, backtracking. "People's stories are just that, _their_ stories. I think that it would be best if they were the ones who told you."

I nodded in understanding. "Yeah, I guess you're right."

I decided that it would probably be best if I change the subject.

"Were you hunting this weekend, with your family?" I asked.

"Yes." He paused for a second, as if deciding whether or not to say something. "I didn't want to leave, but it was necessary. It's a bit easier to be around you when I'm not thirsty."

"Why didn't you want to leave?"

"It makes me…anxious…to be away from you." His eyes were gentle but intense and I felt like my whole body was melting under his gaze. "I wasn't joking when I asked you to try not to fall in to the ocean or get run over last Friday. I was distracted all weekend, worrying about you. After what happened tonight, I'm surprised that you did make it through a whole weekend unscathed." He shook his head amused. "It was a very long three days. I really got on some of their nerves." He smiled ruefully at me.

"Three days? Did you just get back today?"

"No, we got back Sunday."

"Then why weren't any of you in school?" I was frustrated, almost angry as I thought of how much disappointment I had suffered because of his absence. I didn't even have my best friend to keep me company.

"Well, you asked if the sun can hurt me, and it doesn't. But I can't go out in the sunlight – at least, not where anyone can see."

"Why?"

"I'll show you sometime," He promised.

I thought about it for a moment.

"You might have called me," I decided.

He was puzzled. "But I knew you were safe. Lilly spoke to you every night as well."

"But I didn't know where you were. I –" I hesitated, dropping my eyes.

"What?" His velvety voice was compelling.

"I didn't like it; not seeing you. It makes me anxious, too." I blushed, not believing that I was saying this to him out loud. Lilly was the only one who knew the extent of my feelings for Edward.

"Ah," he groaned quietly. "This is wrong."

I couldn't understand what he was saying. "What did I say?"

"Don't you see, Bella? It's one thing for me to make myself miserable, but a wholly other thing for you to be so involved." He turned his anguished eyes to the road, his words flowing almost too fast for me to make sense of. "I don't want to hear that you feel that way." His voice was low but urgent. His words cut through me. "It's wrong. It's not safe. I'm dangerous, Bella – please, grasp that."

"No." I tried very hard not to look like a sulking child.

"I'm serious." He growled at me.

"So am I. I told you, it doesn't matter what you are! It's too late!"

His voice whipped out, low and harsh. "Never say that."

I bit my lip and was glad that he couldn't know how much that hurt. I stared out at the road. We must be close now. He was driving way too fast.

"What are you thinking?" he asked, his voice still raw.

I just shook my head, doubting that I could speak. I could feel that he was watching me, but I ignored him and kept my eyes forwards.

"Are you crying?" He sounded appalled. I hadn't realized the moisture that was falling from my eyes. I used the back of my sleeve to wipe my eyes to try and hide my traitorous tears.

"No." I tried to answer confidently, but I failed when I heard my voice crack.

"I'm sorry." His voice burned with regret. I knew that his apology wasn't just for the words that upset me.

Moments passed in silence and after several quiet moments, he broke it.

"Tell me something," he asked after another minute of organizing his thoughts.

"Yes?"

"What were you thinking tonight, just before I came around the corner? I couldn't understand your expression. You didn't look that scared; you looked like you were trying to concentrate very hard on something."

"I was trying to remember how to incapacitate an attacker – you know, self-defense? I was going to smash his nose into his brain." I thought of the dark haired man with a surge of hate.

"You were going to fight them?" He asked appalled. "Didn't you think of running?" I could tell my answer had all upset him.

"I fall down a lot when I run." I admitted sheepishly.

"What about screaming for help?"

"I was getting to that part."

He shook his head. "You were right – I'm definitely trying to fight fate keeping you alive."

I sighed. We were slowing, passing into the boundaries of Forks. It had taken less than twenty minutes.

"Will I see you tomorrow?" I demanded, rather than asked.

"Yes – I have a paper due, too." He smirked. "I'll save you a seat at lunch, again."

It was amazing that after everything that we had been through tonight, that that little promise set butterflies through my stomach and unable to speak.

We were now in front of Charlie's house. The lights were on and my truck was in its place. Everything looked normal, almost like waking from a dream. He stopped the car, but I didn't move.

"Do you promise to be there tomorrow?" I raised an eyebrow in challenge.

"I promise."

I considered his answer for a moment, and then nodded. I pulled his jacket off and took one last whiff of his sweet scent.

"You can keep it – you don't have a jacket for tomorrow." He reminded me.

I still handed it back to him. "I don't want to have to explain it to Charlie."

"Oh, right." He grinned. "I could bring you one of Lilly's or mine tomorrow?"

I smiled and nodded my acceptance. I hesitated, my hand on the door handle, trying to prolong our departure.

"Bella?" he asked in a different tone – serious, but hesitant.

"Yes?" I turned back and looked at him eagerly.

"Will you promise me something?"

"Yes," I said, and instantly regretted it. What if he asked me to stay away from him? I knew that there was no way I could comply.

"Don't go into the woods alone."

"Why?"

He frowned and his eyes were tight as he stared past me and out the window.

"I'm not always the most dangerous thing out there. Let's just leave it at that."

I shuttered slightly at the bleakness of his voice, but I was relieved. This was, at least, an easy promise for me to keep. "Whatever you say."

"I'll see you tomorrow," he sighed, and I knew he wanted me to leave now.

"Tomorrow, then." I unwillingly opened my door.

"Bella?" I turned and he was leaning towards me, his pale, glorious face just inches from mine. My heart stopped beating.

"Sleep well."

**A/N:**** Well this chapter was just Bella and Edward getting their relationship started. Bella learned that Lilly and the Cullen's are, in fact, vampires, but has yet to learn the whole truth about Lilly. **

**If you have any questions or comments, post them in my reviews for the chapter and I will answer them in my next Author's Note!**

**If you like this story so far, check out my other stories on my FanFiction page! Read and Review!**

**I am also still accepting Twilight stories involving Jasper/any female lead or Bella/selected male leads for those who need a Beta Reader. I will make exceptions on the characters depending on the plot. Just PM me for any further details!**

_-Bella'Xo  
><em>**Xo BellaItalia oX**


	19. Chapter 16

**Disclaimer. ****All publicly recognizable characters, settings etc., are the property of their respective owners. The original characters, ideas and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended. I only do this for fun. –B**

**Chapter 16  
><strong>**(Lilly's POV)**

Have you ever wished that you could just freeze time and stay in that moment forever?

That's how I felt right now as I lay curled up in my Jasper's arms. We were both panting and trying to catch our breaths after hours of love making up here in our bedroom. He held me tightly to his chest with both arms wrapped around me. Never have I felt so loved and so safe. I don't know what I would do if I didn't have my mate in my life. I was almost scared to take my weekly nap last night, because I was afraid that when I woke up, I would be back in my own bed and all of this was a dream. I couldn't tell you how relieved and happy I was to wake up to Jasper placing butterfly kisses up and down my neck where his mating mark remained.

I was broken out of my thoughts when I felt Jasper place a hard lingering kiss on my head.

"God, I love you." He mumbled against my hair, sending a wave of love and adoration to me.

"I love you too, _mon cher._" **(My dear)** I whispered as I looked up and into his eyes.

He leaned down and kissed my lips, putting off of his emotion and love into the kiss. He pulled me closer and continued to kiss me as he ran his fingertips up and down my side.

A knock on the door broke us apart and I looked at the door as if it had begun to grow arms and legs and started to dance around the room.

"Yeah?" Jasper asked who I now discovered was Edward by his scent as it came in from under the door.

"Can I borrow Lilly for a little bit?" He asked, leaving the door shut. No doubt he could read in our minds that we were indecent and that it would not be wise for him to open the door. Jasper would go ballistic if another male sees me exposed.

I looked at Jasper, my instincts demanding that I receive permission from my mate before answering. Being alone with another male so soon after we have mated without permission would only cause trouble for both myself and the male involved. Jasper is a possessive bastard as it is, so add the recent mating to the mix and you're lucky if you're out of his reach.

"His emotions are frazzled and upset." Jasper observed. "We'll see what the problem is and then I will decide if it's a good idea or not for you to partake in his request."

"Alright." I nodded and sat up, rolling out of the bed and pulling the sheet with me and wrapping it around myself like a toga.

Japer followed suit minus the toga as we went to the closet to get dressed, leaving Edward outside of the door waiting for us.

"Meet me in Carlisle's office, please." He requested and I listened as he walked away from the door.

I threw on a pair of light jeans and a long sleeved baby blue top with my initial over my left collar bone. I added a white belt to match the letter and then threw on a pair of white sneakers.

Jasper dressed in a similar manner, only he wore a pair of light jeans, a baby blue long sleeved top that clung to his muscles, and a long sleeved buttoned down white collared shirt. Sometimes it amazed me how alike we were, not only personality and hobby wise, but just with the everyday things we did.

I smirked at him as I noticed his attire and took his out stretched hand as he pulled me out of the room and down the hallway to Carlisle's office.

I sat down in the chair in front of Carlisle's desk as Jasper stood behind me with his hands gently massaging my shoulders.

"I need help." Edward began as he fidgeted in his seat.

"Anything, Edward." Carlisle promised.

I nodded agreeing with him, always wanting to be there for my best friend.

"Did Alice tell you guys what happened to Bella tonight?" He asked.

"Almost happened." Jasper amended.

"Yes, almost." Edward agreed.

When Alice told me what almost happened to Bella earlier, I was beside myself with guilt. She had invited me to go with her and Jess and Angela earlier tonight, but since I was not in school and didn't know what to do, I told her that Jasper and I were still out hiking and wouldn't be back until late. If I would have gone with her, I could have prevented those guys from messing with her with my gift and she would never have had to feel such fright from almost getting brutally raped and murdered.

"Don't be so hard on yourself, Lil." Jasper said, feeling my guilt and distress at the topic.

"Yeah," Edward agreed. "You didn't know that was going to happen, nor is it your fault that it did. Bella just attracts danger and it would be a full time job trying to keep her away from every possible disaster that she would be involved in."

"True." I nodded, and then looked up at Edward with a smirk. "Plus, that job is already taken."

I could tell that if he could, Edward would be blushing scarlet right now.

"Anyway," He said changing the subject. "I've got a dilemma," He admitted, his expression turning grave. "You see, I want…very much…to kill him," The words started to flow fast and passionate. "So much. But I know that would be wrong, because it would be vengeance, not justice. All anger, no impartiality. Still, it can't be right to leave a serial rapist and killer wandering Port Angeles! I don't know the humans there, but I can't let someone else take Bella's place as his victim. Those other women – someone might feel about them the way I feel about Bella. Might suffer what I would have suffered if she'd been harmed. It's not right –"

Carlisle's wide, unexpected smile stopped the rush of his words cold.

"She's very good for you, isn't she? So much compassion, so much control. I'm impressed." He praised him.

"I'm not looking for compliments, Carlisle." Edward mumbled.

"Of course not. But I can't help my thoughts, can I?" He smiled again. "We'll take care of it. You can rest easy. No one else will be harmed in Bella's place."

I watched as Edward read the plan in Carlisle's head and Jasper and I waited patiently until they were ready to discuss it and what part I would be playing in all of this.

After several moments, Edward finally nodded his head in consent to Carlisle's plan and they were ready to explain it to the rest of us.

"Okay, this is what we're going to do." Carlisle began. "From the research that Alice did on this 'Alonzo Calderas Wallace,' also known as 'Lonnie.' It appears that he is wanted in Portland, among Huston and Oklahoma. Edward can show us where to find him and at that point we will drug him. We will take him to Portland, since it is the closest, and we can have Lilly compel him to turn himself in to the authorities, admit to his crimes, and tell the officials where to find the bodies of his victims." He paused and looked to Jasper. "Is this okay with you, son?"

Jasper was quiet for a moment, then hesitantly nodded.

"On one condition." He said leveling his gaze at Carlisle. "I come with." He demanded. "I will not have my mate in danger, even if they are just humans."

"That is fine, Jasper." Carlisle agreed. "I understand that with it being so close to your mating, that you want to protect your mate from any and all dangers, even if protection isn't warranted."

"Alright then," Edward said anxious to go. "I'll show you where to find him, let's go."

Carlisle grabbed his black bag and the four of us headed out to Edward's silver Volvo. Jasper and I sat in the back and the other two took their seats in the front. Alice was sitting on the front steps as she has for the past few hours. She grinned and waved as we drove away.

"I saw that she checked ahead." Edward acknowledged. "We won't have any difficulties."

The trip was very short on the dark, empty road. He left the headlights off to keep from attracting attention. We all remained silent and left alone with our thoughts.

Edward did not linger in Port Angeles. He took us to the drive where the creature named Lonnie was drowning in his disappointment with his friends – two of whom already passed out. It was obvious to all of us that it was hard for Edward to be so close – for him to hear the monster's thoughts and see his memories, most likely of Bella mixed in with less fortunate girls who no one could save now.

Edward's breathing sped and he clenched his hands on the steering wheel.

"Go, Edward," I told him gently as we exited the car. "We'll make the rest of them safe. You go back to Bella."

Jasper and Carlisle nodded their agreement and he smiled at us appreciatively. It seemed that it was the right thing for me to say. Her name was the only distraction that could mean anything to him, now.

He left us the car and ran back to Forks in a straight line through the sleeping forest.

"Alright," Carlisle said interrupting us as we watched Edward disappear into the night. "Let's get this over with."

We silently nodded and followed after him into the home of the human monster.

**(Jasper's POV)**

CNN broke the story first.

I was glad it hit the news before we had to leave for school, anxious to hear how the humans would phrase the account, and what amount of attention it would garner. The family stood in the living room, all ready to go to school, as we watched in anticipation.

There was an earthquake in South America and a political kidnapping in the Middle East. So it ended up only earning a few seconds, a few sentences; and one grainy picture.

"Alonzo Calderas Wallace, suspected serial rapist and murderer wanted in the states of Texas, Oregon, and Oklahoma, was apprehended last night in Portland, Oregon. Wallace appeared at the police station early this morning, almost in a daze as he recovered from a night of drinking and getting high with friends. He admitted to his crimes and gave the locations to the bodies of all of the young women he had slaughtered. We aren't sure what made him decide to turn himself in, but whatever the reason, I'm sure that the families of his victims are happy that they can finally bring their loved ones home and put them to rest. Officials are unable to tell us more at the time, or whether he will be extradited to Houston, Portland, or Oklahoma City to stand trial."

The picture was unclear, a mug shot, and he'd had a thick beard at the time of the photograph. Even if Bella saw it, she would probably not recognize him as the man who tried to assault her last night. We all hoped that she wouldn't; it would make her needlessly afraid. Thinking of this, I pulled Lilly close to me, happy that she was here and safe in my arms.

"The coverage here in town will be light. It's too far away to be considered of local interest." Alice told us. "It was a good call for you guys to take him out of state." Edward nodded, seemingly busy with his own thoughts.

We've done all we could and this monster no longer hunted and none of us were murderers. Well…not recently, anyway.

We made our way to the garage to get ready to go to school. It was obvious that Edward was impatient and no doubt was going to pick Bella up at her house again.

"Alice, do you mind –"

She cut him off. "Rosalie will drive. She'll act pissed, but you know she'll enjoy the excuse to show off her car." Alice trilled a laugh.

Edward grinned at her. "See you at school."

Alice sighed. "I know, I know, not yet. I'll wait until you're ready for Bella to know me. You should know, though, this isn't just me being selfish. Bella's going to like me, too."

Edward didn't answer her as he hurried out the door to his car.

"She'll do more than like you, Alice." Lilly said as she wrapped her arm around her shoulder. "She'll love you! You both got along so well that day that she sat with us at lunch that one day. Just wait until she really gets to know you!"

"Thanks, Lilly." She smiled, her emotions lifting to greater heights. "You're the best sister, ever."

"Hey!" Rose appeared in the doorway and pouted, putting her hands on her hips.

"You both are!" Alice amended and Rosalie smiled.

"Wait, where's Edward?" She asked looking around for him or his car.

"He went to pick Bella up." Lilly answered as Emmett joined us. "Do you mind driving?"

"Ugh!" Rose cried. "What is with his infatuation with his human? This shit is pissing me off!" She grumbled as she grabbed her keys from where they were hanging with all of the others.

"Chill out, babe." Emmett said trying to calm his mate. "Look on the bright side, now you get to show off your car to all the kids at school."

She smiled at that as we all piled in to her BMW and made our way to school.

**(Edward's POV)**

"Where's the rest of your family?" Bella asked suddenly.

I took a deep breath – registering the scent in the car with true pain for the first time; I was getting used to this, I realized with satisfaction – and forced myself to be casual again.

"They took Rosalie's car." I parked in the open spot next to the car in question.

I hid my smile as I watched her eyes widen at the red BMW next to us.

"Ostentatious, isn't it?" I smirked.

"Um, wow. If she has that, why does she ride with you?" She asked, trying not to offend me.

Rosalie would have enjoyed Bella's reaction…if she were being objective about Bella, which probably won't happen. If only she would be more open and treat Bella the same way she treated Lilly. Then again, it was almost impossible not to like Lilly.

"Like I said, it's ostentatious. We try to blend in."

"You don't succeed." She told me, and then she laughed a carefree laugh; the kind that I have only witnessed in Lilly's memories of the two of them together. The wholly untroubled sound of her laughter warmed my hollow chest even as it made my head swim with doubt.

"So why did Rosalie drive today if it's more conspicuous?" She wondered out loud.

"Haven't you noticed? I'm breaking all the rules now." My answer should have been mildly frightening – so, of course, Bella smiled at it.

"Why do you have cars like that at all, if you like your privacy so much? Lilly doesn't have a car at all." She asked as we walked.

"An indulgence," I admitted. "We all like to drive fast."

"Figures." She mumbled, her tone sour.

"As for Lilly, she has always preferred running to driving a fast piece of machinery; something about the freedom and loving the fresh air. I assume that Rose and Jasper will get her into it though. She is an expert at working on cars, just like Rose, so it's only a matter of time before they get her to actually owning one." I smiled.

"Yeah, that sounds like Lilly." She returned my smile as she must be thinking about her best friend.

_Nuhuh! I don't believe this! How the hell did Bella pull this off? The only single Cullen left! First Lilly with Jasper and now her! I don't get it! Why?_

Jessica's mental boggling interrupted my thoughts. She was waiting for Bella, taking refuge from the rain under the edge of the cafeteria's roof, with Bella's winter jacket over her arm. Her eyes were wide with disbelief.

Bella noticed her, too, in the next moment and faint pink touched her cheeks when she registered Jessica's expression. The thoughts in Jessica's head were clearly written all over her face.

"Hey Jessica. Thanks for remembering." Bella greeted her as she reached out for the jacket. Jessica handed it to her wordlessly, still in shock from what she was seeing.

I should be polite to Bella's friends, whether they were good friends or not. The only good ones seemed to be Angela Webber and Lilly from what I have seen and heard in their minds so far. It would only hurt Bella to hear what the rest of them think, and that's the last thing that I want to do.

"Good morning, Jessica." I greeted her.

_Whoa…_

Jessica's eyes popped even further out of her head. It was strange and amusing and honestly a bit embarrassing to realize how much being near Bella had softened me. Before I met her, I wouldn't have spared a glance in Jessica's direction let alone say hello to her. Now, it seems like no one is afraid of me any longer. If Emmett found out about this, he would have a laughing fit and mock me for the next century!

"Er…hi." Jessica mumbled and her eyes flashed to Bella's face, full of significance. "I guess I'll see you in Trig."

_You are so going to spill. I am not taking no for an answer! Details, DETAILS! I have to have details! Edward freaking CULLEN! Life is so unfair…_

Bella's mouth twitched, obviously catching on to the look that Jessica was still giving her. "Yeah, I'll see you then." She mumbled as Jessica's thoughts ran wild as she hurried across the campus to her first class.

_The whole story. I'm not accepting anything less. Did they plan to meet last night? Are they dating? How long? How could she keep this a secret?_ _Why would she want to? I know I wouldn't! It can't be a casual thing – she has to be seriously into him. Is there any other option? I will find out! I can't stand not knowing. I wonder if she's made out with him? Oh, swoon…_

Jessica's thoughts were suddenly disjointed, and she let wordless fantasies swirl through her head.

**(Jasper's POV)**

"You guys are getting worse than us with the public displays of affection." Rose said, breaking the moment between Lilly and I as they took their seats at our lunch table.

"Oh, leave them alone, Rose." Alice said sticking up for us. "They're newly mated and in love." She said wistfully.

"I suppose Edward isn't going to grace us with his presence again?" Emmett asked as he slung an arm around Rosalie, getting comfortable at the table.

"He'll be sitting with Bella again today, if that's what you mean." Alice sighed.

"Of course he will." Rose grumbled.

It was quiet for a while as they all played with their food and I played with the strands of Lilly's hair, occasionally placing a feather light kiss on her shoulder. I had to admit that I haven't felt this comfortable around humans for as long as I can remember. Lilly was a God send!

"Wait a minute…" Rose snarled suddenly, breaking me out of my thoughts. "What are they talking about?"

I felt my eyebrows crease in confusion at what she was talking about, but then realized that it was about Edward and Bella as Lilly suddenly stiffened in her seat. I pulled her closer to me, not sure what was happening, but wanting to protect my mate in any form, regardless; whether it be emotional or physical.

I stretched my senses to listen to what they were talking about over at Edward and Bella's table.

'_What would you do if someone dared you to eat food?'_ She asked in a low voice so that it wouldn't carry to human ears. But we all could hear her just fine.

"I don't know?" Alice lied, her emotions showing guilt and dread. "What are they talking about?"

'_Jessica's analyzing everything I do,'_ He informed Bella._ 'She'll break it down for you later.'_

"It sounds like she knows about us!" Rose hissed as she slammed her fist on the table, leaving a crack in the wood. "Does she or doesn't she know, Alice? Don't you dare lie to me or I'll burn you where you sit!" I growled under my breath at the thought of Bella knowing the truth about us. It could cause all kinds of problems, not to mention hurt Lilly if Bella didn't accept her for what she was.

'_I warned you I would be listening.'_ Edward admitted to her.

"Rose!" Lilly exclaimed, sticking up for Alice. "Don't take it out on Alice! It wouldn't be her fault if she did know! I understand that you are upset, we all are, but yelling and threatening her is not the way to get your answers!" She turned her attention to me. "And you!" I looked at her surprised. "Don't think I don't hear you growling over there. Knock it off!"

"Yeah, breathe, babe." Emmett said, wrapping his arms around his hyperventilating mate.

I sighed as I turned to look at Alice. "Does she know, Alice?" I asked calmly, but on the inside, I was a mess. I was furious, but knew better than to vent my frustrations out here right now. Rose had that role handled enough for all of us. Not to mention it wouldn't be safe to talk about this in front of so many humans.

"She knows." Alice whispered. "But don't worry, she won't tell anyone."

'_Why did you go to that Goat Rocks place last weekend…to hunt? Charlie said it wasn't a good place to hike, because of bears.'_ Shit. How much did he tell her?

'_Bears?'_ She gasped.

"That stupid, idiotic moron," Rose growled under her breath and turned her attention towards Edward and Bella. "How could he do this to us?" She snarled, getting worked up again.

"Easy, Rosie." Emmett said as he began to rub her shoulders in attempt to calm and relax her. Though, it seemed like it would be an impossible task, if anyone could do it, it would be Emmett.

'_If you read carefully, the laws only cover hunting with weapons.'_

'_But bears?'_

'_Grizzly is Emmett's favorite.'_

Rose growled as she heard this. If Edward was smart, he would shut his big mouth right now. The more I listened, the more pissed off I got.

'_So, what's your favorite?'_ She asked, her emotions showing fascination and interest.

'_Mountain lion.'_ He answered brusquely.

'_Of course, we have to be careful not to impact the environment with injudicious hunting. We try to focus on areas with an overpopulation of predators – ranging as far away as we need. There's always plenty of deer and elk here, and they'll do, but where's the fun in that?'_

'_Where indeed,' _ She murmured as she listened politely to Edward as he spoke.

"She's going to hate me." Lilly murmured to herself only loud enough for me to hear.

"No, she won't." He said shaking my head. "You're her best friend. I'm sure that she understands why you couldn't tell her."

"Alice?" She asked, her bottom lip trembling as she held back the tears.

Alice glanced back over at Edward's table, then back towards Lilly.

"She doesn't hate you. She understands completely why you didn't tell her, but she will have questions that you might not be ready to answer." She said.

"D-Does she kn-know about my diet?" Lilly asked.

Alice let out a long sigh before nodded her head.

"Edward explained it all last night. She doesn't know what gift you have, but she understands why you need to and knows that you would never hurt her."

Lilly let out a sigh of relief and looked over at Edward's table at Bella who was looking back at her.

'I'm sorry.' She mouthed to her.

'It's okay.' Bella replied and gave her an encouraging smile that Lilly returned. She then returned to her conversation with Edward.

'_I'm trying to picture it – but I can't. How do you hunt a bear without weapons?'_

'_Oh, we have weapons,'_ He told her and then flashed her a wide smile. _'Just not the kind they consider when writing hunting laws. If you've ever seen a bear attack on television, you should be able to visualize Emmett hunting.'_ She glanced towards the table and shuttered.

I shook my head in exasperation. He is just digging himself deeper and deeper.

"Fine, I can't deal with him now." Rose said with her head in her hands. "I'll do it when we get home today. He better be there." She then snapped her gaze to Alice. "But you! You should have told us the moment you found out that she knew! How long have you been hiding this information?"

"I haven't been hiding anything!" Alice denied.

"Yeah, right." Rose snapped back at her. "You are a psychic, Alice! You would have seen it the second he decided to tell her! You should have warned us, instead of letting us go into this blind!"

"She isn't going to tell anyone!" Alice tried to defend herself.

"Come on, Rose. You're being mad at the wrong person, here. Though she should have told us the second that she found out, it won't change anything being upset with her. Direct your anger to the guilty party." Emmett tried to coax his mate.

"Yeah." I agreed. "Your anger should be directed at Edward. After all, it was his responsibility to tell us."

"But we might have been able to change things if she had told us _before_ it happened." She growled as she glared at Alice. "All she wants is her precious little human friend. Who cares what happens to us, right? As long as Alice gets what she wants. If she starts telling people, the Volturi will find out and what happens when they get here? They learn about Lilly and she will gain Aro's attention. Not to mention, we all go down with Edward since we didn't do anything to fix the situation like I wanted to! You risked all of our lives with this little stunt! But no, that doesn't matter, as long as you get your little human friend. Is it all worth it, Alice? Are our ashes worth your little human friend? I ought to rip you apart and burn you right here, right now!"

"ENOUGH! ALL OF YOU!" Lilly shrieked, silencing the arguing going on at the table. "First, that's my best friend that you're talking about and I know she won't tell anyone! Second, what about Edward? From what I understand, he's been alone for the last 109 years. Doesn't he deserve his mate, too? So what if she's human. He deserves to have someone to love, no matter their species. Lastly, yes, Alice should have warned us and we all should have had a family vote to decide if it was okay for him to tell Bella or not, but what's done is done. All that matters is what is going to happen now. All of this yelling and arguing isn't going to change anything."

Everyone was silent for a moment before Rose looked at Lilly apologetically. I could still feel that she was really upset with Bella knowing, but she understood what Lilly said. Alice was looking down at the food as she played with the mashed potatoes with her fork, feeling guilty and accepting that Lilly was right in her rant. Emmett was feeling grateful that she stopped the fighting and drama.

Suddenly, Alice tensed as she was pulled into a vision and then immediately turned to face Edward. He looked back at her for a moment as he watched the vision along with her. It must have had to do with him or Bella because he frowned for a second before turning back to his conversation with Bella.

Alice slumped against the table and pouted. I could feel her frustration as she continued to keep looking over her shoulder at Edward.

"What is it, Alice?" I asked gently.

"He's ignoring me." She grumbled, but kept her vision to herself.

Edward glanced back over at her again, but just rolled his eyes at her pleading look and turned his attention back to Bella.

"See! Now you know how the rest of us feel!" Rose began to snap again. "Spoiled, sneaky, ungrateful…"

"UGH! THAT'S IT! I'M SICK AND TIRED OF THE FIGHTING!" Lilly growled as she pulled herself out of my arms and began to collect her things and stood. "I'll see you guys after school. By then, maybe you all can talk about this like the decade year old vampires you are instead of children!" She turned her gaze to me. "Are you coming, Jasper? I need to hunt."

I nodded, not wanting to say anything as I collected my things and followed her out of the canteen.

**A/N:**** So now everyone knows that Bella knows. What do you think about what they did with Lonnie? What about Rosalie's reaction to the whole thing? Read and Review!**

**If you have any questions, post them on my reviews and I will answer them in my next Author's Note!**

**If you like this story so far, check out my other stories on my FanFiction page! Read and Review!**

**I am also still accepting Twilight stories involving Jasper/any female lead or Bella/selected male leads for those who need a Beta Reader. I will make exceptions on the characters depending on the plot. Just PM me for any further details!**

_-Bella'Xo  
><em>**Xo BellaItalia oX**


	20. Chapter 17

**Disclaimer. ****All publicly recognizable characters, settings etc., are the property of their respective owners. The original characters, ideas and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended. I only do this for fun. –B**

**Chapter 17  
><strong>**(Lilly's POV)**

We were all lounging in the living room waiting for Edward to come home from dropping Bella off after school. Jasper and I were sitting in the loveseat with my body curled into his as he kept his arms protectively wrapped around me. Rosalie was pacing back and forth in front of the sliding glass door and Emmett said in the chair watching her with a worried expression. Carlisle and Esme were sitting on the couch with a medical book in his hand with the other arm draped affectionately around his mate. Alice sat on the other end of the couch flipping through a fashion magazine as if she didn't have a care in the world, much to Rose's dismay.

I couldn't help but be worried about what will happen when my best friend walks through the door. Even though what he did was wrong without discussing it with the family first, I don't want to see him get his ass handed to him.

I could tell by his demeanor that Jasper was just as pissed off as Rose, even though he wasn't as vocal about it. I understood his reasoning, completely, but at the same time, it was a load off my chest that I didn't have to keep any more secrets from my best girl friend.

Everyone tensed as we heard Edward's Volvo pull down the driveway and park it in front of the garage. I held my breath as I heard him shut his car door and stroll into the house. He entered the living room with a guilty expression marring his features. He immediately made eye contact with me and gave me an apologetic smile.

_It's okay, Edward._ I thought to him._ I forgive you. I just wish you would have discussed it with us first before you told her. Regardless, she knows now and we can't change that. Like I said before, I'll support you with whatever you want to do and I'll be on your side. Just please don't do something this serious again without talking to us about it._

He nodded and then sat down on the couch in between Carlisle and Alice.

"She knows." Edward clarified.

"Yes." Carlisle agreed and looked back down at Edward.

"You Idiot! You selfish, arrogant prick!" Rosalie exclaimed, drawing all of our attention off of Edward and on to her. "What the hell were you thinking, telling her? How could you jeopardize our lives over some…_human_?"

"She has a name!" Edward snarled. "_Bella._"

Esme stood from her seat on the couch and put her arm around Rosalie, trying to comfort her. She shrugged her arm off of her and resumed her pacing.

"What exactly did you tell her, Edward?" Jasper asked, trying to be the peace maker.

"I didn't tell her." Edward admitted truthfully. "You can blame Jacob Black for that."

"Jacob Black as in Ephraim Black? His descendant?" Carlisle asked surprised.

"Oh, that's rich." Emmett snorted.

"One in the same." Edward nodded. "When she went down the La Push last weekend, he told her of their legends featuring the cold ones, and she made the connection after doing some research on the internet and from an old Quileute book that explained all of their legends."

"They broke the treaty!" Rose snarled as she stopped pacing and faced us once again.

"This means war!" Emmett said rubbing his hands together in excitement. "We get to put a few dogs down."

"Let's not get hasty." Carlisle interrupted. "I'm sure the boy didn't know. He is young, after all."

"Still!" Rose argued.

"No, Carlisle's right." Alice chimed in. "Jacob didn't know that the legends were real, or that he was breaking the treaty."

"So we're just going to let this go?" Rose asked incredulously.

"Yes." Carlisle nodded. "There is no reason to start a war and cause violence over a young boy's mistakes."

Rose just glared at Carlisle and Edward in response before stomping out of the room.

"She won't tell anyone if that's what everyone's worried about." Alice added.

"I'm sure she won't, Alice." Esme said taking her seat on the couch again next to Carlisle.

The next day after Edward dropped Bella off after school, she called me and wanted me to come over to talk. Apparently she had a lot of questions to ask me. To say I was nervous was an understatement. I knew that she was okay with it and all, but I was still nervous.

I pulled up in front of my parent's house, parking in the driveway. I took a deep unneeded breath and opened the car door and got out. I put my hands in my jean pockets and walked across the street and knocked on Bella's front door.

I heard her run to the front door and yank it open in haste. She must have been as nervous and anxious as I was. Knowing that made me feel better for some reason.

"Hey." She greeted me.

"Hi." I replied, shuffling my feet in place. It was unusual for me to fidget and I couldn't help but laugh at myself.

"You want to come in?" She asked opening the door wider for me to get through.

I looked at their driveway, making sure that the chief was not home to overhear our conversation and nodded, making my way into her house.

We got comfortable on the couch in her living room, facing each other as we continued to fidget and make small talk, not knowing where to start.

"So," Bella began, finally working her way into the topic that had us both so frazzled. "You're a vampire?"

"Well, technically I am what is known as a 'Dhampir,' but yes, I am a vampire/human hybrid. More vampire than human though, because I am ¾ vampire and only a ¼ human, but I don't think statistics matter. It all results in the same thing." I rambled on needlessly.

She looked at me surprised for a second, and then shook her head, breaking herself out of her stupor.

"Edward didn't mention that. How are you part human, still?" She asked.

"Um…it's a long story." I mumbled.

"Well, maybe that is best left for another time, then." She concluded. "I'm not sure what time Charlie will be home, so why don't we move on from that and if we have time after we talk about everything else, then maybe I can hear it?"

"Yeah, that's probably the best idea. My story only leads to more questions than answers anyway. Maybe after you know everything else, it will make more sense to you and you won't have as many questions." I agreed. "Anyway, what do you want to know?"

A moment of silence passed between us before she hesitantly looked up at me.

"Why didn't you tell me?" She mumbled.

"What was I supposed to say, Bella?" I asked. "I'm sure I would have told you at some point, but at the same time, I was afraid that you would hate me; that you would be afraid of me. I mean, there is this law in my world where it is illegal to expose ourselves to mortals, but I would have broken that law if I knew for sure that it wouldn't change anything between us. Not to mention, it wasn't only my secret to tell. The whole family would have had to agree to it being okay for you to know, because it would have been their lives on the line as well."

"Vampires have laws?" She asked as both of her eyebrows shot up to her hairline in surprise.

"Yeah," I answered. "We are ruled by a royal family called 'the Volturi'. They make and enforce the laws."

"Oh," she nodded absentmindedly. "I guess I can understand that. I just feel kind of silly. I mean, you were the one I talked to about the Cullen's and things I noticed about them, when you were one of them all along."

"No, it's okay. You needed _someone_ to talk to about it and if that person didn't witness what we did when Tyler's van almost crushed us, they would have sent you to the padded room for sure!" I chuckled and she began to laugh as well.

"Yeah, I guess you're right." She shook her head at our antics and took a deep breath. "So, can all of you read minds like Edward can?"

"No, that's just Edward's gift." I clarified. "But Alice can see the future and Jasper can feel and manipulate emotions."

"What about you?" She asked. "Edward mentioned that you had a very strong gift and that is why you need human blood on occasion."

"Umm…" I began to fidget. If what she knows about me so far didn't scare her away, then I was sure that this would. "I can control things and people with my mind."

I didn't hear a reply from her so I looked up to see what her reaction to my admission was and saw that her eyes were wide and her jaw was slack.

"Are you serious? How does that work?" She asked leaning closer with interest.

"Well, I can levitate object and move them around. I can make people do things against their will, like if I wanted to, I could make you jump around the room and act like a chicken." I chuckled. She laughed with me, but was clearly amazed. "And Carlisle said that if we work on my gift, I can expand it to do even more, such as teleport a person or object, control the elements as long as they are already there. Like I won't be able to make fire or water appear out of nowhere, but if it is already in front of me, I can manipulate or control it. I already go the fire and water part down, but he was saying that I could learn to do more with it. I actually always keep a lighter in my possession so I can practice."

"That is so amazing!" She gaped.

"I guess, but having so much power can have a down side as well as be dangerous." I said solemnly.

"I can imagine." She agreed. "So tell me more about vampires?" She asked changing the subject. She could tell that my gift was a hard subject to get in to, even if she didn't know how dangerous it could be. And now learning that I can expand it? I mean, it would be useful at times to know all of the ins and outs of my power, but it doesn't change the way I feel about it.

We spent the next half hour talking about vampires and all of the things that vampires could do, what with our extra senses, speed, and strength. She was enthralled with everything I said and didn't even notice when Charlie walked in the front door and greeted us. She just about jumped out of her skin when he put a hand on her shoulder and said hello.

I helped Bella prepare dinner for her and her father, but left just before they sat down to eat. I had already eaten my human meal two days prior and really wasn't in the mood for lasagna anyways. My diet fell along the line of different kinds of meats rather than noodles or pasta.

When I got home, I settled in for a movie with the family as Edward was getting ready to disappear out the door to go and watch over Bella while she slept.

"Don't you think that it's just a little strange watching some chick while they sleep?" Emmett asked as Edward came down the stairs.

"Emmett, leave your brother alone." Esme chided.

"No, he's right! What are you, some kind of vampire stalker?" Rose commented from across the room as she filed her sharp nails.

"It's none of your business what I do during my nights." Edward retorted.

"But it's my business what you are doing to our family!" Rose argued, slamming her file down on the coffee table and standing up as she challenged Edward.

"Haven't we been over this?" He asked angrily as they continued to banter back and forth.

Tempers were getting high and I felt so helpless and I didn't know what to do. I didn't like to see my sister and best friend fighting. Jasper could sense all of this and I looked at him gratefully as I felt him send calm into the room.

"Thank you, sweetheart." Esme said graciously then turned back to the other two. "Both of you knock it off! Rosalie, what Edward does during his free time is up to him as long as he isn't out to hurt the girl."

"I would never." Edward grumbled, rolling his eyes.

She glared at him with narrowed eyes and her arms crossed over her chest. "We'll see if you still think so after your date on Saturday. Being alone with your blood singer isn't the smartest thing, especially for our family when she turns up missing or dead. Even Alice doesn't know if she will survive Saturday or not."

"Rosalie!" Esme snapped.

Rose huffed and sat back down, picking her file back up and continued to file her nails in haste, obviously irritated.

"Well, I'm out of here. See you all later." Edward said before dropping a kiss on my head and heading out the door.

Carlisle was working a double tonight, so it was just Alice, Jasper, Emmett, Rose, and Esme watching the movie with me. We decided to put on 'The Count of Monte Crisco', one of the best revenge stories of all time.

About ¾ of the way through the movie, my cell phone began ringing. I heard Alice gasp as I was fishing my phone out of my bag as I looked to her, waiting for her to come back to the present. I saw who it was on the caller I.D. and smiled, happy to hear from one of my friends from Vancouver.

"Don't answer it!" She rushed out, but by the time she said something, it was too late.

"Hello?" I greeted my friend Trent.

"_Hey Babe,"_ I could hear him smile through the phone. _"How's…Spoons?"_

"It's Forks." I giggled correcting him.

"_Whatever, it's still named after an eating utensil."_ He chuckled in response.

**(Jasper's POV)**

I could feel my temper begin to rise as her conversation continued with the male voice on the other end of the phone. Who was this guy? Why are they so friendly with each other?

"_I miss you, babe! Vancouver isn't the same without you here."_ He complained. _"I'm tempted to drive down there myself and kidnap you and bring your ass back here."_

I growled at that and got up and immediately began pacing the room. The hell he was going to take my Lil away from me. I'd tear him apart before he even entered the town.

Their conversation went on along with her giggles and his chuckles and they talked. He went on the say how that now that the prettiest girl in the city was gone, Vancouver lost its most beautiful attraction. I would continue to growl or snarl at parts of their conversation and she would continue to look at me with a perplexed look on her beautiful face. I couldn't decide who to be mad at. Her, for not mentioning that she was with me and letting him continue to flirt with her and talk to her that manner, or him for hitting on my girl. The final straw was at the very end of their conversation.

"Listen, Trent, I gotta go. Give me a call sometime soon, though. I miss you."

"_I miss you, too, babe and I will call you soon. I love you." _

I roared at hearing another man tell my girl that he loved her. What was she cheating on me? Was it more than just a one sided attraction? Did they have a relationship still in progress? She didn't reply to him, just looked up at me in alarm and confusion. I was seething and I watched out of the corner of my eye as everyone began to slowly back out of the room. Pretty soon, the only ones left were me, Lil, and Alice who was standing in the doorway to the living room.

"It's not what you think, Jasper. Let her explain before you jump to conclusions." She murmured before disappearing out of the room.

She snapped out of her shock and put the phone back to her ear.

"_Lilly? What was that? Are you there? Are you okay? Lilly, talk to me babe!"_

"Uh, I'm sorry Trent. Everything is fine, but I got to go. I'll talk to you soon, okay?"

"_Alright, as long as you're okay. Have a good night, babe."_

She hung up the phone and looked at me as if she was trying to find what was wrong just by looking at me. Her emotions reflected alarm, confusion, worry, love and concern. I could feel the Major worming his way to the forefront of my mind and I couldn't help it when he suddenly took over. I had no control over him right now. I was too pissed off and worried about that phone call to try and keep him at bay. He was a pissed as well, maybe more so than I was and needed to stake his own claim on our mate to remind her who she belongs to.

**A/N:**** Cliffhanger! I had a request for a fight between Lilly and Jasper and many of you wanted to meet Lilith. *TEASER* - She will be introducing herself during the next chapter! I hope everyone enjoyed the chapter!**

**If you have any questions, post them on my reviews and I will answer them in my next Author's Note!**

**If you like this story so far, check out my other stories on my FanFiction page! Read and Review!**

**I am also still accepting Twilight stories involving Jasper/any female lead or Bella/selected male leads for those who need a Beta Reader. I will make exceptions on the characters depending on the plot. Just PM me for any further details!**

_-Bella'Xo  
><em>**Xo BellaItalia oX**


	21. Chapter 18

**Disclaimer. ****All publicly recognizable characters, settings etc., are the property of their respective owners. The original characters, ideas and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended. I only do this for fun. –B**

**Chapter 18  
><strong>**(The Major's POV)**

Ah…freedom! Between the other day and now, this is the second time I have been freed in over 60 years. Now that my mate is in our life, I have a feeling that I will be out more often.

Now, I need to remind my mate who she belongs to; me. Not that Trent or any other man.

I narrowed my eyes at her with my hands clasped behind my back, as always, and my posture straight and professional to show my dominance.

"So we meet again, my mate." I smirked.

"Major," She nodded her acknowledgement at me. "To what do I owe the pleasure?" She asked raising an eyebrow in question.

"I believe that I need to remind you whom you belong to." I growled at her, remembering that phone call.

"And what makes you think that I have trouble with that knowledge." She asked with a growl building in her chest. I could tell she was getting upset with me, but that was too damn bad!

"Why don't we call Trent and ask him. I'm sure he knows the answer to that question." I snapped sarcastically.

"Excuse me?" She asked incredulously, standing up from her seat on the couch and approached me, stopping directly in front of me. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means that you belong to me and that what you have going on with your little boyfriend, Trent, is over! I will not share my mate with another male!" I snarled, backing her up against the wall. "I don't want to have to punish you, so you better listen carefully and do exactly what I say!"

Suddenly, her whole demeanor changed. Her emotions showed rage, hurt, anger…

The house started shaking and objects and furniture around the room began to levitate. She was growling a continuous growl that kept building. I watched as her eyes turned black and slight changes were being made to her appearance. I held my ground with her though, showing my dominance and my refusal to back down.

Out of nowhere, everything immediately stopped and dropped to the ground. I could hear loud thuds with the occasional piece of glass shattering, but I didn't take my eyes off of her. Bright red streaks hd appeared in her long brown hair and her once hazel eyes that were now black turned crimson with black flakes in them. They were hypnotizing. She had a dark look to her and she stood tall and arrogant, just like I did.

I smirked, knowing exactly who this was.

Lilith.

I was taken aback as she abruptly disappeared right in front of my eyes. I could sense her still on the property, in Jasper and Lillian's bedroom to be exact. I grinned to myself as I realized that Lilith had a handle on her gift far better than Lillian did. Her vampire side was exactly like mine and I loved it already. She was my mate, as Lillian was more Jaspers, but since we are both the same people only with alter egos, we technically are all each other's mates.

Moments later, I was broken out of my musing when she appeared before me wearing a tight black dress with black high heal boots that came up just above her knees. She wore red jewelry to match her eyes and highlights to accent the look. Overall, she was absolutely tantalizing.

She shot me a dark grin quite seductively as she noticed me checking her out and began to circle me. I did nothing but stand there, following her with my eyes. She stopped in front of the couch and took a seat, crossing her legs in a way that showed off her creamy white thighs. My mouth pooled with venom just thinking about sinking my teeth into her.

"Hello, Major." She smirked. "It is a pleasure to finally make your acquaintance." She said in a seductive voice.

"Lilith." I nodded. "The pleasure is mine." I grinned. "Not that I am complaining, but is there a reason that you are out?"

"I felt it was necessary." She vaguely answered nonchallantly. "Same as you did."

"Could Lillian not take her punishment as she should and instead send you to take it for her?" I growled as I balled my hands into fists still behind my back.

She let out a loud laugh, throwing her head back and then shook her head.

"Lillian did not force me to come out; quite the opposite, actually." She stood and approached me, then ran a finger down from my ear to my collar bone. "As for the punishment you speak of, it will not be necessary, I assure you." She whispered seductively as she nibbled on my ear.

I suppressed a shiver and bit the inside of my cheek to keep from groaning out loud. I kept my head facing forward, but looked at her from the corner of my eyes.

"And what makes you say that, my dear?" I asked, raising a brow in question.

She sighed as she walked away and leaned on the end table, running her hand through her hair. "Trent and Lillian were never together, nor have they ever hooked up."

I narrowed my eyes at her with suspicion and shifted through her emotions, looking for the truth. Her emotions held nothing but honesty, along with an undercurrent of arrogance and lust, so I decided that she was indeed telling the truth. But that didn't answer as to why they were shamelessly flirting with each other over the phone.

"Go on." I grumbled and nodded.

"Trent was her only true friend from back in Vancouver. As you know, with her gift and the fact that she is a Dhampir, we tend to draw people to us. It makes it near impossible to have any real friends." She explained. "He has always had a thing for her, but she has explained to him that she just doesn't have feelings towards him that way." She said this in an exasperated voice. "Though, if it were me, I would have just told the kid that it's not going to happen and to get a life and get over it, but hey, that's just me." She winked.

"That still doesn't explain the flirting." I challenged with a growl, not letting myself get distracted.

"And what did you consider flirting? Telling her best friend back in Vancouver that she missed him too? Laughing at something he said? I didn't see her say or do anything wrong." Lilith bit back.

"I don't like hearing that another male wants to kidnap her!"

"He was teasing!" Lilith rolled her eyes, radiating irritation as she continued to walk around the room while I stayed in place.

"I wasn't even mentioned! When he asked what that noise was, she made an excuse." I retorted calmly, but on the inside, my venom was boiling.

"Oh, so when you roared in the back ground, you wanted her to say 'Yeah, that was just my vampire boyfriend's alter ego throwing a temper tantrum because I am on the phone with you.' Is that right?" Sarcasm was dripping from every word she spoke.

I gritted my teeth together, because she was right. But I didn't care; I didn't want another male around her. Not during our first mating season. Just wait until she goes in to heat. That's going to be a fun ride. I'll have to lock her in the bedroom for the entire week! Her pheromones will be flowing from her and I will have to dismember any male within a 10 mile radius.

"Have you had your first heat yet?" I asked.

"No. You know that only starts after the first month of mating." She smirked, radiating nothing but pure lust at the thought of it.

"That's right." I mused.

After a female vampire finds her mate, the following month she begins her first heat cycle for one week. Since our vampire sides are like animals, they have the same kind of heat cycles as they do. Unfortunately, for regular female vampires, they are barren, so instead, they just have a regular cycle where they produce pheromones and crave sex. The problem with that is that it drives them crazy until they get a release. That will knock off the cravings for around 6 hours or so until it happens again. They will go after any male with a dick at that point, so the male has to guard his female with his life. The pheromones attract other males who can smell it and for those who can't smell it, they tend to gravitate towards the female even though they don't know why. It is a very arousing smell.

Now, since Lillian is a fertile vampire, this would be the time where she would be the most likely to get pregnant. Since we don't want any children at the present time, we will have to take precautions using protection to prevent a pregnancy. Females go in to heat every three months.

I remember my Captain and his mate used to include me during Charlotte's heat cycle. They have a very open relationship. But my mate is mine, and as I pointed out before, I will not share. I am a possessive bastard and I don't mind it one bit. Sometimes, I think Lillian likes it, but others, like now, she can't stand it.

"Are you done reprimanding me now, Major, or are we going to continue to fight and argue about nothing all day?" She asked, breaking me out of my thoughts. She was in front of me, her body right up against mine as she wrapped her arms around my neck and ran her fingers through my hair, massaging my scalp as I began to purr.

"One condition," I answered walking towards her and pinning her to the wall in the living room. I ran my nose up her neck and stopped at her ear. "Lillian will tell that male on the phone that she is currently taken and if he continues to try to peruse her, the friendship will end. Do you understand, Lilith?" I whispered harshly.

She nodded.

"Say it!" I snapped.

"I understand, Major." She bit back glaring at me.

"Good, then I will allow her to keep her friendship with the boy to continue since I know he is important to her, but there will be a fine line between what is appropriate and what is not." I snarled and felt as my fangs began to extend inside of my mouth and I sunk my teeth into our mating mark, reminding her who she belongs to and who is the dominant one in this relationship.

I continued to pump my mating venom into her veins and she suddenly began to moan and wither against the wall. I began to grind my erection into her heat and shortly after, that threw her over the edge. She growled and bit down on her own mating mark, making me cum in return. That's what I loved about having a mating mark; it was so damn sensitive and arousing. Even the slightest of touches on that mark from our mate will send us into a fit of pleasure.

I could feel Jasper pushing for control again. We both removed our teeth from each other's necks and looked into her lust filled eyes. She was panting just as hard as I was with her cheeks flushed from her orgasm. I smashed my lips to hers in one final kiss before I retreated back in to the depths of Jasper's mind.

**(Lilly's POV)**

I felt myself regaining control of my body from Lilith as I continued to pant after the heated kiss between the Major and Lilith. As I looked into my mate's eyes, I could tell Jasper was returning as well.

Moments passed in utter silence and we did not move from our place against the wall as we continued to gain control of our breathing. I watched as he close his beautiful eyes and lean his forehead against my own and placed a quick chaste kiss on my swollen lips.

"I'm sorry." He whispered, his forehead still pressed against mine.

"I'm sorry, too." I whispered back.

He pulled back and looked at me as confusion seeped through his gift to me as his silent way of asking why.

"I should have told Trent that I was seeing someone during our conversation. I don't know why I didn't, but it was stupid and I promise next time, I will."

"I'm sorry for doubting your commitment to me and I'm sorry for getting so jealous. I am not trying to make excuses for myself, but this mating thing really takes a toll on my emotions. I'm possessive as it is without the mating and it just makes it worse." I explained and ran a hand through my hair with a long, dragged out sigh.

"No, it's okay, I understand." I said shaking my head. "I would have acted the same way if our positions were reversed. But I want you to know that you are the only one that I've ever loved the way I do and that won't ever change. I could never see myself hurting you, because I know that it would hurt me just as badly."

He gave me a small understanding smile and kissed me on my lips again.

"_Je t'aime_." **(I love you)** He murmured against my lips.

_"Comme Je t'aime, mon compagnon. Vous êtes le seul qui me fait me sentir comme si je ne peux pas respirer sans toi près et je ne l'aurais pas une autre manière. Je veux passer le reste de l'éternité dans tes bras, mon amour."_ **(As I love you, my mate. You are the only one who makes me feel as though I can't breathe without you near and I wouldn't have it any other way. I want to spend the rest of eternity in our arms, my love.)** I whispered.

He smiled in return and pressed his lips against mine once more as he opened the flood gates to his emotions, wrapping me in love, adoration, lust, and completion.

The next day at school flew by quickly with Edward and Bella gossip still flying around the school. Bella felt self-conscious about it all, but I told her not to worry about it that they are all just too bored with their own lives. Not to mention that she is now dating a Cullen so chances are their eyes are going to be on her quite often and that she will have to learn to ignore it.

She was excited for her date with Edward in a few days, but she refused to tell Charlie that she wasn't going to Seattle anymore. I warned her that it was probably not a good idea to go somewhere with Edward right now without her Dad knowing- per Edward's request- but she still wouldn't budge. She agreed that if he asked her again, she would tell him the truth, but unless that happened, she will just let her dad think whatever. When I asked her why, she said that if something were to happen to her, she wouldn't want the Cullen's to be suspects in her disappearance. I thought that was very sweet of her, and she was proving to be a wonderful best friend. She was actually the first girl best friend I had ever had.

That day after school, I found myself sitting alone on the porch swing, enjoying the first warm spring day that we've had since I've arrived. I was thrilled that the winter was over for the most part and looking forward to more of the warmth.

I watched as Edward pulled up and parked his car in front of the garage, as always. He stepped out and shut his door, and then walked up the porch steps, taking a seat next to me on the swing with a sigh.

"What's wrong?" I asked, immediately knowing that he was feeling troubled.

"Nothing." I grumbled.

I bumped him with my shoulder so that he would look at me and asked him again.

"I know you, Edward, and something is troubling you. Talk to me." I pressed.

He ducked his head and sighed again, and then lifted up his head to look out over the backyard.

"The Swan's had some visitors when I dropped Bella off after school." He murmured.

"And...?" I pressed again.

"It was Jacob and Billy Black." He clarified.

"Oh," I answered, rolling the names around in my head before I spoke again. "What happened?"

"Billy knew who I was."

"He saw you? With Bella?" I asked, pushing off the ground a bit with my feet to get the swing to start moving.

"He saw me drop her off, talk to her for a few extra minutes, and drive away. He looked upset and anxious. He pictured me killing her in his mind." I could tell he was pained by the image and I knew that he worried about that every time he was in Bella's presence. "I think it's time for a family meeting." He said before he stood up and held out his hand to help me up. I gave him a small reassuring smile before taking his offered hand and heading into the house.

When we got inside, the whole family was already in the living room. Alice must have warned everyone that Edward wanted to call a family meeting and made sure that everyone was here when we entered the house. She gave Edward a small smile and a nod, letting him know that she was on his side. He didn't smile back, but he nodded his acknowledgement in return.

"What did you do?" Rosalie growled, standing in the middle of the room. Her eyes were dark and angry and glued to Edward, most likely telling him off in her mind.

I made my way over to the fireplace where Jasper was standing with one arm resting on the shelf above it. He enveloped me with his free arm and placed a kiss on his mating mark. I shivered at the pleasure that flowed through me at his touch, but shook it off in order to pay attention to what was happening with the family. I could feel Jasper smirking against me, no doubt feeling the lust and euphoria that traveled through me, along with my determination to ignore it and pay attention.

"As I dropped Bella off at her house after school,-"

"Of course, it's about the human." Rose interrupted and rolled her eyes.

Edward glared at her but said nothing, only continued with his story. "I noticed that she had some visitors outside waiting for her and Charlie to get home. It was Billy and Jacob Black and Billy was not happy to see me. He was acting very cold towards Bella and kept eyeing her oddly.

"It was obvious that the boy didn't believe in the legends about us that the tribe would tell and only believes that his dad is being superstitious. At the same time though, Bella was worried that Billy would say something about us and what we are to Charlie.

"They watched the game together, but the entire time, Billy's thoughts would linger on questions and fears about us. He is going to call the other Elders and wolves and have a meeting about seeing Bella with me. He was debating on telling Bella about us and believes that, and I quote, 'the younger generation needs to know that they are not just stories.' He is very determined."

"But the treaty says that they cannot expose us! They already broke it once by telling Bella, are we going to let them get away with it?" Rosalie ranted.

"Calm down, Rose." Carlisle said in a very calm demeanor. "They haven't done anything, yet and we don't know if the rest of the Elders will agree with Billy."

"So we're just going to wait until they do start telling people and after they expose us, then take action?" She asked incredulously.

"No, that's not what I was suggesting." He shook his head. "If we must, I will call a meeting with the Wolves and the Elders and talk to them about this."

She didn't respond, only crossed her arms and fell on to the couch next to Emmett, who pulled her into his arms as soon as she was seated.

"Was there anything else, Edward?" Esme asked.

"Jacob asked Bella if her and her friends are going to come back to the beach and when he did, Billy's thoughts immediately started screaming 'Did he mean THAT ONE? Did she bring a Leech to La Push?' Again, something he was planning on discussing at the pack meeting.

"You didn't cross the line and go over to their territory, did you?" Jasper asked skeptically.

"No, of course not. I was on the family hunting trip last weekend when Bella went to La Push." He clarified and Jasper nodded.

"So it was just a misunderstanding." Carlisle said and nodded absentmindedly. "The child didn't know he was breaking the treaty when he told Bella, so we won't hold it against them. We just need to meet with them to sort all of this out. No blood or venom needs to be shed."

"Damn." Emmett complained.

I laughed to myself. Emmett was always looking for a fight.

"Alice, can you see how this will turn out?" Carlisle asked her.

**(Edward's POV)**

The rest of the week flew by relatively fast and before I knew it, it was Friday. I was currently sitting in the canteen with Bella at our table when I just remembered that I would be leaving after lunch was over with Alice and Lilly to hunt.

"I should have let you drive yourself today." I announced while she was chewing a bite of her bagel.

"Why?" She asked alarmed.

"I'm leaving with Lilly and Alice after lunch."

"Oh." She blinked, bewildered and disappointed. I could hear it in her voice and see it in the way her face dropped. "That's okay, it's not that far of a walk."

I frowned at her impatiently; like I was going to let her walk.

"I'm not going to make you walk home. We'll go get your truck and leave it here for you." I concluded.

"I don't have my keys with me." She sighed. "I really don't mind walking."

I shook my head. "Your truck will be here, and the key will be in the ignition - unless you're afraid that someone might steal it." I laughed at the thought. Whoever would steal that truck was in a category all of their own.

"Alright," She agreed, pursing her lips.

I smirked overconfidently, knowing that I would find those keys. She didn't think that I could and I wish I could see the look on her face when she finds her truck in the parking lot. This will be a fun challenge.

"So, where are you going?" She asked casually, even though I could sense her eagerness.

"Hunting," I answered grimly. "If I'm going to be alone with you tomorrow, I'm going to take whatever precautions I can." My expression grew morose. "You can always cancel, you know." I mentioned almost pleadingly.

As much as I would love to spend the time with her, it was like a double edged sword. I could be fine or I could kill her.

She looked down and was silent for a few moments. I held my breath, waiting for her answer.

"No," She whispered, glancing back at me. "I can't."

I sighed, letting out the breath I had been holding. "Perhaps you're right," I murmured bleakly.

"What time will I see you tomorrow?" She asked changing the subject, but somewhat depressed. I only wish I knew why?

"That depends...it's a Saturday, don't you want to sleep in?" I offered.

"No!" She answered too fast and I restrained the smile that was threatening to appear on my face. It made me happy that she was anxious to spend time with me.

"The same time as usual, then." I decided. "Will Charlie be there?" I asked praying that he would be.

"No, he's fishing tomorrow." She smiled.

I held in a growl at the thought of no one knowing that she was going to be with me. This was not safe for her and if I was a smarter, less selfish being, I would cancel with her and keep her safely away from me. But I apparently am not all that smart and extremely selfish for not wanting to give her up.

"And if you don't come home, what will he think?" I asked sharply, remembering Billy Blacks thoughts and Alice's vision of me killing her.

"I have no idea," She answered coolly "He knows I've been meaning to do the laundry. Maybe he'll think I fell in the washer."

I scowled at her attempted humor and she scowled right back at me. Her anger was nothing compared to mine, though.

"What are you hunting tonight?" She asked, realizing that he lost our scowling contest.

"Whatever we find in the park. We aren't going far." I answered bemused by her casual reference to my secret realities.

"Why are you only going with those two?" she asked genuinely curious.

"They are the most...supportive." I frowned.

"And the others?" She asked timidly. "What are they?"

I puckered my brow for a brief moment. "Incredulous, for the most part."

She peaked quickly over her shoulder at my family. They sat staring off in different directions, exactly as they always do. But now, there were only five of them. Alice sat playing with her food as she was flipping through her visions. Jasper had Lilly in his arms as she sat holding her jug of iced tea or lemonade, whispering in her ear and she would smile and laugh at whatever he said, making him grin in return. It was clear to anybody who looked at them that they were undeniably in love with each other. I envied their relationship at times, but then I think of Bella and it all goes away. Lastly, Emmett would be looking at Rose as he cracked the occasional joke, while she would flip her hair and look around at all of the humans, sometimes trying to catch them starring at her. She could be really vain sometimes.

"They don't like me." Bella observed, breaking me out of my thoughts.

"That's not it," I disagreed. "You know Lilly loves you. You're her best girl friend and she wants us to be happy no matter what we do. Alice is enthralled with the idea of you and I being together. And the others..." I sighed. "They just don't understand why I can't leave you alone."

She grimaced. "Neither do I, for that matter."

I slowly shook my head and rolled my eyes towards the ceiling before I met her gaze again. "I told you - you don't see yourself clearly, at all. You're not like anyone I've ever known. You fascinate me."

She glared at me, but I could tell that she knew I was teasing and I smiled as I deciphered her expression.

"Having the advantages I do," I murmured, touching my forehead discretely. "I have a better than average grasp of human nature. People are predictable. But you...you never do what I expect. You always take me by surprise."

She looked away, her gaze wandering back to my family, obviously embarrassed and dissatisfied. I nearly kicked myself for making her feel like a science experiment or something. I needed to fix this.

"That part is easy enough to explain." I continued. I kept my eyes on her face but she still hadn't looked at me again. "But there's more...and it's not so easy to put into words-"

I stopped talking when I followed her gaze and saw Rosalie glaring at Bella. I hissed angrily at her, making her turn her attention away from Bella, breaking the hold she had on her. Bella looked relieved to be free from her cold, dark glaze. She looked back at me and I could see the confusion and fear that widened in her eyes.

My face was tight as I tried to explain.

"I'm sorry about that. She's just worried. You see...it's dangerous for more than just me if, after spending so much time with you so publicly..." I looked down.

"If?" She pressed.

"If this ends...badly." I dropped my head into my hands, as I had that night in Port Angeles. I heard her hand drop on to the table as if she reached to try and comfort the pain and anguish I was feeling as I pictured her drained and broken body in my mind, but changed her mind at the last second.

I couldn't help but wonder why she wasn't frightened by all of this. She should be running in the opposite direction by now, but here she sat, trying to comfort _me_ when it was her life that was in danger.

"And you have to leave now?" She asked, clearly struggling to speak in a normal voice.

"Yes." I answered as I raised my face. I was serious for a moment, but just looking at her, so full of life and amazingly selfless, that I had to smile. "It's probably for the best. We still have fifteen minutes of the wretched movie eft to endure in Biology - I don't think I could take any more." I joked.

It was then that Alice and Lilly both appeared behind me. I could hear Alice in my head begging to be properly introduced and to be able to say 'hello' to Bella.

"Alice, Lilly." I greeted them without looking at them.

"Edward," Alice answered in her high soprano voice.

"Hey Edward! Hey Bella!" Lilly greeted in her own musical voice as she kissed my cheek and then leaned over the table to kiss Bella's. I shook my head to myself with a smile; being raised in Canada where the population is mainly French, it was common for her to kiss our cheeks in greetings or partings.

_'Please? Edward!' _Alice trilled in my head.

I sighed. "Alice, Bella - Bella, Alice." I introduced them, gesturing casually with my hand and a wry smile on my face.

"Hello, Bella." Alice said in a friendly tone. "It's nice to finally meet you, properly. We didn't get to talk much at lunch that one day, but I'm so happy to finally be able to talk to you!"

I flashed a dark look at her.

"Hi, Alice." Bella murmured shyly.

"Are you ready?" Lilly asked me.

"Nearly." I nodded, my voice aloof. "I'll meet you in the car."

They left without another word, only a wave and a smile from Lilly in Bella's direction. She returned it before bringing her attention back to me with a sigh.

"Should I say 'have fun,' or is that the wrong sentiment?" She asked.

"No, 'have fun' works as well as anything." I grinned.

"Have fun, then." She said trying and failing to sound wholehearted. She knew that she wasn't fooling anyone, but it still made me happy to know that she was as reluctant as I was to part company.

"I'll try." I still grinned. "And you try to be safe, please."

"Safe in Forks - what a challenge." She snorted sarcastically.

"For you it is a challenge." I retorted, my jaw hardened. "Promise."

"I promise to try to be safe," she recited. "I'll do the laundry tonight - that ought to be fraught with peril."

"Don't fall in." I mocked.

"I'll do my best." She smiled and nodded.

I stood then and she rose, too.

"I'll see you tomorrow." she sighed.

"It seems like a long time to you, doesn't it?" I mused. I would get to see her sooner, considering the fact that I sneak out to her house while she is sleeping.

She nodded glumly.

"I'll be there in the morning," I promised, trying to lift her spirits and smiled a crooked smile. I reached across the table to touch her face, lightly brushing along her cheekbone, like I have always been doing lately. Then, I turned and walked away.

**A/N:**** So, what did you guys think of Lilith? I hope she lived up to your expectations. Don't worry, she will make more appearances throughout the series. :-) But I'm not sure if she will make another appearance in this story. What do you guys think? **

**Post your questions or comments in my reviews and I will answer them in my next Author's Note.**

**If you enjoyed this story so far, check out some of my other stories on my FanFiction page! Also, I am still accepting Twilight stories that involve Jasper/any female leads or Bella/selected male leads if anyone is looking for a Beta Reader. I will make exceptions on the characters depending on the plot. PM me for details.**

_- Bella'Xo_

**Xo BellaItalia oX**


	22. Chapter 19

**Disclaimer. ****All publicly recognizable characters, settings etc., are the property of their respective owners. The original characters, ideas and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended. I only do this for fun. –B**

**Chapter 19  
><strong>**(Lilly POV)**

Today was the day. It was the day where one of two things could happen that would change our futures. One was that when Edward took Bella out on their outing alone today that he would end up killing her. The other was that he would keep himself in check and Bella would be fine. Alice still couldn't see the outcome, but I kept my fingers crossed and prayed for them. It would kill Edward if he murdered Bella and I don't want anything to happen to either of my best friends. To say that I was completely stressed out is an understatement.

We were all in the living room at the moment doing our own things. Emmett was playing a video game against Jasper, I was reading a book about the battle strategies of the Revolutionary War, courtesy of Jasper's study, Alice was on her lap top shopping for spring clothes for the family- including me, despite my insistence that it was not necessary- Rosalie was reading a magazine, Esme was working on a new interior design project for the cottage that was on the property, something that she has always wanted to do. Lastly, Carlisle was reading a book on modern medicine as he enjoyed his day off, regardless of being on call.

"Hey guys, I'm getting ready to head out." Edward announced as he appeared in the entry way of the living room.

I put my book down, after marking my page, and appeared in front of Edward with my hands on his cheeks. "You can do this, Edward. I have every bit of faith in your ability to keep yourself under control. Regardless, I will be there for you." I told him in all seriousness.

"Can't you use your gift on me? Please?" He begged.

I sighed; we had been over this all week long. He has been pleading with me to use my gift on him so that he will be compelled not to hurt Bella, even if he felt the urge.

"I can't do that, Edward." I shook my head, dropping my hands from his face and bit my bottom lip. "If I do that, then you won't really be resisting the temptation and showing yourself that you are stronger than you give yourself credit for. I can't always use my gift on you every time you are going to be around Bella. You need to learn to do this on your own. I know you can do this, Hun. We've been preparing for two weeks now and building your resistance to her blood and you haven't needed me, yet. We just hunted yesterday, so that should help you immensely. Have faith in yourself and you can do it." I smiled.

His eyes closed in resignation and he nodded his head. "You're right." He said. "I can't always rely on you to curve my appetite for her blood." He paused and looked up at me from the floor. "Thank you, Lil. I love you." He wrapped his arms around me in a tight hug.

I heard Jasper growl from on the floor next to Emmett. I ignored him, giving Edward one final squeeze and a kiss on the cheek.

"You'll do great." I winked and made my way over to the chair I was sitting on and grabbed my book. I turned to see that Jasper still had his eyes on Edward in a threatening glare, so I flitted to where he sat and took my own seat in his lap, effectively taking his attention off of Edward and on to me.

"Stop threatening Edward through your thoughts." I said glaring at him.

"Sorry." He grinned sheepishly, making me laugh.

I couldn't necessarily blame him for being over protective and possessive at the present time, considering it's only been a week since we first mated and I don't expect it to stop any time soon. I have the same instincts as him at the moment so I can relate and can't get too mad about it.

"Good luck, sweetheart." Esme said giving him a loving smile from her spot curled up under Carlisle's arm.

"Yeah, good luck, man." Emmett added, pausing the video game to wish Edward well. Jasper nodded his agreement with Emmett and Edward nodded his thanks in return.

"Thanks guys." Edward smiled gratefully.

"As Lilly said, we have every bit of faith in you, son." Carlisle nodded his support.

"It's true!" Alice chirped. "I'll be watching, so I will fill the family in on what's going on. But you've got this in the bag, Edward. Even though I can't see it, I can feel it."

"Thanks, Alice." Edward nodded.

Rosalie snorted from her spot on the couch and everyone looked at her in surprise and shock. Feeling the gaze from everyone in the room, along with the quiet, she looked up from her magazine and looked around at everyone.

"What?" She asked innocently. "I'm not going to sit here and encourage this. We don't know if he's going to be able to keep himself from killing her, so why get his hopes and confidence up only to have it possibly crushed? I won't contribute to it either."

"Rosalie!" Esme gasped.

"No, don't worry about it, Esme." Edward interrupted her scolding, raising his hand up in a 'stop' gesture. "She has every right to her opinion, and in this case, she's right. All I can do is strive to do my best."

"And that's all we ask for." Carlisle added with a smile full of pride.

"Alright, well, I'm out of here. I'll see everyone tonight." Edward said waving before he disappeared down the hall and out the door.

**(Bella's POV)**

For the most part, we walked in silence. We were currently hiking through the woods, not even on a trail, as we made our way to where ever Edward was taking me. Occasionally he would ask a random question that he hadn't gotten to in the past two days of interrogation. He laughed when he heard about the three fish that I killed and how I had given up on the whole institution of pets.

The hike took most of the morning, but he never showed any sign of impatience at the human pace that we traveled at. The forest spread out around us in a boundless labyrinth of ancient trees, and I began to get nervous that we would never find our way out again.

After several hours, the light that filtered through the canopy transformed, the murky olive tone shifting to a brighter jade. The day had turned sunny, just as he had foretold days earlier. For the first time since we entered the woods, I felt a thrill of excitement – which quickly turned to impatience.

"Are we there yet?" I teased with a fake scowl on my face.

"Nearly," He smiled at the change in my mood. "Do you see the brightness ahead?"

I squinted my eyes, trying to see through the thick forest ahead of us. "Um, should I?"

He smirked. "Maybe it's a bit too soon for your eyes."

"Time to visit the optometrist." I muttered and his smirk grew more pronounced.

Finally, after another hundred or so yards, I could definitely see a lightening in the trees up ahead. I picked up my pace as my eagerness began to grow with every step. He let me lead now and followed behind me quietly.

I reached to the end edge of the pool of light and stepped through the last of the fringe of ferns into the most beautiful place I had ever seen. The meadow was small, perfectly round, and filled with wildflowers – violet, yellow, and soft white. Somewhere nearby, I could hear the bubbling music of a stream. The sun was directly overhead, filling the circle with a haze of buttery sunshine.

I walked slowly into the meadow; completely awe struck, through the soft grass the covered the floor of the paradise, along with swaying flowers and warm, gilded air.

I turned to look back at Edward, wanting to share this beauty with him, but he wasn't where I thought he would be. I began to spin around, searching for him in alarm. I finally spotted him under the dense shade of the canopy at the edge of the hollow, watching me with cautious eyes. It was then that I remembered what the glorious meadow had driven from my mind – the enigma of Edward and the sun, which he'd promised to illustrate for me today. Lil said that she was a little different looking than the other vampires when she stepped in the sun, but it was relatively similar to what I was about to witness with Edward.

I took a step back towards him, completely curious and anxious to discover what this anomaly would be. His eyes were wary and reluctant as I looked at him expectantly. I smiled encouragingly and beckoned to him with my hand and took another step towards him. He held up a hand in warning, making me stop and rock back on to my heals. Edward took a deep breath as he tried to develop the nerve to continue, and then stepped out of the shadows and into the bright glow of the midday sun.

As I looked at him, I was completely overtaken by shock. His skin, white despite the faint flush from yesterday's hunting trip, literally sparkled. It looked like there were thousands of diamonds embedded on to the surface of his skin. He looked at me expectantly with a troubled expression. No words were spoken as I held out my hand for him to take and he placed his cold hand in to mine.

I pulled him out in to the center of the meadow and found the perfect spot to sit in the sun. He took notice of what I wanted from him and instead of sitting up as I was, he ended up lying down on the grass with his hands behind his head.

I wasn't sure how much time had passed as we stayed in those positions. I was still looking at him in amazement, still not used to the sparkle of his skin, even though I hadn't taken my eyes off of him yet. Now and then, his lips would move, so fast it looked like they were trembling. But, when I asked, he told me he was singing to himself, but it was too low for me to hear. Apparently, all vampires could communicate that way and no one would ever know, except for other vampires. The more I learned, the more enthralled I became.

Hesitantly, always afraid, even now, that he would disappear like a mirage, too beautiful to be real…I hesitantly reached out with one finger and stroked the back of his shimmering hand. I marveled again at the perfect texture of his skin which was as smooth as satin, but cold and as hard as stone.

When I looked up at his face, I noticed that his eyes were open and he was watching me with a small smile gracing his lips. I took note that his eyes were butterscotch today, lighter and warmer after hunting.

"I don't scare you?" he asked playfully, but I could hear the curiosity in his voice.

"No more than usual." I shrugged.

His smile widened and his teeth flashed in the sun.

I inched closer and stretched my whole hand out to trace the contours of his forearm with the tips of my fingers.

"Do you mind?" I asked after he closed his eyes again.

"No," He whispered with his eyes still closed. "You can't imagine how that feels." He sighed.

I continued to lightly trace my hand over the perfect muscles of his arm, followed the faint pattern of bluish veins inside the crease at his elbow. I reached to turn his hand over with my other hand. He flipped his palm up in one of those blindingly fast movements and ended up startling me as my fingers froze on his arm for a brief second.

"Sorry," he murmured. "It's just too easy to be myself with you." he sighed.

"I want you to be yourself with me." I whispered with a small smile at his admission.

After a few moments of silence, he opened his eyes and entwined my fingers with his.

"Tell me what you're thinking," He whispered. I looked up from our hands to his face and noticed that he was watching me intently. "It's still so strange for me to not know."

I snorted. "You know, the rest of us feel that way all of the time."

"It's a hard life." He stated with a hint of regret in his tone. "But you didn't tell me." He pressed.

I sighed. "I was wishing I could know what you were thinking…" I stopped, hesitating, not sure if I could finish.

"And?" he insisted.

"I was wishing that I could believe that you were real. And I was wishing that I wasn't afraid." I admitted.

"I don't want you to be afraid." He murmured, looking down at our entwined hands and ran his fingertip over the top of my knuckles.

I heard what he couldn't truthfully say, that I didn't need to be afraid, that there was nothing to fear.

"Well, that's not exactly the fear I meant, though that's certainly something to think about."

So quickly that I missed his movement, he was half sitting, propped up on his right arm, his left palm still in my hands. His gorgeous face was only a few inches from mine. I might have - should have – flinched away from his unexpected closeness, but I couldn't find it in me to move. His golden eyes mesmerized me.

"What are you afraid of, then?" he whispered intently.

I couldn't answer him. As I had once before, I smelled his cool breath in my face. It was sweet, delicious, and it made my mouth water. It was unlike anything else. I was drawn to him. Instinctively, unthinkingly, I leaned closer, inhaling. I wondered if this was anything like how Lilly felt when she was like this with Jasper. I assumed that it was, and probably more intense, considering what she had told me about mated vampires.

Just like that, he was gone.

In the time that it took me to open my eyes and allow them to focus, he was twenty feet away, standing at the edge of the small meadow, in the deep shade of a huge fir tree.

He stared at me, his eyes dark in the shadows, his expression unreadable and alarmed.

I could feel the hurt and shock show on my face and my empty hands, that once held his, stung.

"I'm…sorry…Edward," I whispered, knowing that he could hear.

"Just….give me a moment," he called, just loud enough for my human ears to hear. I sat completely and utterly still.

After ten incredibly long seconds, he slowly – even for him – walked back. He stopped, still several feet away and sank gracefully to the ground, crossing his legs. His eyes never left mine and he took two deep breaths and then smiled his apology.

"I am so very sorry." He hesitated. "Would you understand what I meant if I said that I was only human?"

I nodded once, not quite able to smile at his joke. Adrenaline pulsed through my veins as the realization of the danger that I was in slowly sank in. He could smell that from where he sat and his smile turned mocking.

"I'm the world's best predator, aren't I? Everything about me invites you in – my voice, my face, even my smell. As if I need any of that!" He snorted and then unexpectedly, he was on his feet, bounding away, instantly out of sight, only to appear beneath the same tree as before, having circled the meadow in half of a second.

"As if you could outrun me!" He shouted and laughed bitterly.

He reached up with one hand and, with a deafening crack; he effortlessly ripped a two-foot-thick branch from the trunk of the spruce. He balanced it in that hand for a moment, and then threw it with blinding speed, shattering it against another huge tree, which shook and trembled at the blow.

He was in front of me again, standing two feet away, as still as stone.

"As if you could fight me off," he said gently.

I sat without moving, more frightened of him than I had ever been before. I'd never seen him so completely freed of that carefully cultivated façade. He had never been less human – or more beautiful. Face ashen, eyes wide, I sat like a bird locked in the eyes of a snake.

His lovely eyes seemed to almost glow with rash excitement. Then, as the seconds passed, they dimmed. His expression slowly folded into a mask of ancient sadness.

"I'm designed to kill." He sighed and ran a hand through his hair and down to his neck as he rubbed the back of it. He looked back up at me, a look of sorrow on his face. "Don't be afraid," he pleaded, his velvet voice unintentionally seductive. "I promise…no…I swear that I won't hurt you." But, he seemed more concerned with convincing himself rather than me. "Don't be afraid." He whispered again and he stepped closer, exaggerating his slowness. He sat sinuously, with deliberately unhurried movements, until our faces were on the same level and only about a foot apart.

"Please, forgive me," He formally apologized. "I can control myself. You just caught me off guard, but I'm on my best behavior now."

He waited, but I still couldn't speak.

"I'm not thirsty today, honestly." He winked.

At that, I had to laugh, though the sound came out shaky and breathless.

"Are you alright?" he asked tenderly, reaching out slowly and carefully to place his marble hand back in mine.

I looked at his smooth, cold hand, and then at his eyes as I closed my hand back around his. I smiled timidly. His answering smile was absolutely dazzling.

"So where were we before I behaved so rudely?" He asked in the gentle cadences of an earlier century. Butterflies filled my stomach and I gave him a shy smile.

"I honestly can't remember."

He smiled, but his face was still ashamed. "I think we were talking about why you were afraid, besides the obvious reason."

"Oh, right."

"Well?"

I looked down at our hands and doodled aimlessly across his palm. Seconds ticked by and I still hadn't answered him.

"How easily frustrated I am," he sighed.

I looked into his eyes, abruptly grasping that this was every bit as new to him as it was to me. As many years of unfathomable experience as he had, this was hard for him, too. I took courage from that thought and finally answered him.

"I was afraid…because, for, well, obvious reasons, I can't stay with you. And I'm afraid that I'd like to stay with you, much more than I should." I answered, looking down at our hands as I spoke. It was quite difficult for me to admit this out loud to him.

"Yes," he agreed slowly. "That is something to be afraid of, indeed. Wanting to be with me; that's really not in your best interest."

I frowned at this.

"I should have left long ago," he sighed. "I should leave now, but I don't know if I can."

"I don't want you to leave." I mumbled pathetically, staring down again and running my other hand that wasn't holding his through the soft grass.

"Which is exactly why I should. But don't worry, I'm essentially a selfish creature, as most of us are. I crave your company too much to do what I should."

"I'm glad."

"Don't be!" He snapped and withdrew his hand, more gently this time. It was hard to keep up with his sudden mood changes. They always left me a step behind and dazed. "It's not only your company I crave! Never forget that. Never forget I am more dangerous to you than I am to anyone else." He stopped, and I looked to see him gazing unseeingly into the forest.

I began to think for a moment, trying to make sense of what he had just said.

"I don't think I understand what you meant by that." I admitted.

He looked back at me and smiled, his mood shifting, yet again.

"How do I explain?" he mused. "And without frightening you again…hmmm." Without seeming to think about it, he placed his hand back in mine; I held it tightly in both of mine.

"That's amazingly pleasant, the warmth." He sighed.

A moment passed as he assembled his thoughts, and then went on to explain to me about what being his singer meant. It intrigued me and surprisingly didn't scare me as it should. I always knew that there was something amiss with my self-preservation. Any other person in my position would have surely been freaked out to the point of moving to the other side of the country from the vampire who compared your blood to his brand of heroine.

Even though I felt like there had to be something wrong with me because of that, I was glad that there was, because I would rather risk my life every moment of every day than to never be able to be with Edward ever again.

**(Jasper's POV)**

We all stood at the treaty line – sans Edward – waiting for the Wolves and their Elders to appear. We stood as a united front; Carlisle front and center as our leader, me on his right and Emmett on his left. My Lil stood slightly behind me to my left, Alice on slightly behind me on my right as to give her some protection as well since she didn't have a mate. Esme stood behind Carlisle on his left next to Lil, and Rosalie stood the same way behind Emmett.

Minutes passed and finally, the smell of wet dog and human blood began to drift through the tree line on the other side of the treaty line, along with their heart beats that continued to get louder as the got closer.

Less than thirty seconds later, the three wolves appeared, along with the elders as they rode in on a Gator. **(A Gator is an off-roading vehicle that looks like a small jeep wrangler. They can come with different amounts of seats, along with a small bed like a truck has. This one is a four-seater with a bed in the back.) **The big black wolf, Sam, disappeared back behind the trees and came back out in his human form while the Elders helped Billy Black into his wheel chair that was being stored in the bed of the truck.

"Where's the mind reader?" Sam asked after he stopped between the two wolves, Paul and Jared.

"He is out with his girlfriend at the present time." Carlisle answered hesitantly.

"You're talking about Bella Swan, aren't you?" Billy Black asked from his chair.

"Yes, that is our son's girlfriend." Carlisle confirmed with a nod.

Paul and Jared growled, but one look from Sam shut them both up.

"She knows what you all are?" Old Quil asked in a tone laced with disgust.

"Yes," Carlisle nodded.

"The she must be aware of the treaty that divides our lands, does she not?" Billy quipped.

"She is aware." Carlisle confirmed.

"Then she should know better than to bring one of you on to La Push lands!" Sam snapped, backed up by more growling from Paul and Jared.

"I assure you, none of us have been on your lands." Carlisle corrected in a calm voice; always the peace keeper.

"But – "Harry Clearwater began, looking down at Billy Black.

"My son, Edward, informed us of this misunderstanding." Carlisle interrupted, and then turned to look at Billy. "When he dropped Bella off after school the other day, he stuck around in the woods to make sure that no problems would arise from you seeing them together. He heard the misunderstanding in your thoughts and spoke to us about it when he came home that evening." He paused, letting what he said sink in before he continued. "The friends that your son spoke of are some of her other friends from school, not any members of my family."

"Maybe you shouldn't jump to conclusions in the future." Rose snipped from behind Emmett. Carlisle looked back at her as if to say 'that will do,' and she only shrugged in response.

Relief passed amongst the Quileutes along with the embarrassment and shame radiating from Billy Black.

"We apologize for the misunderstanding because of the assumption from one of our elders." Sam apologized. "The treaty will remain intact."

"I don't know about that." Emmett mumbled.

"What do you mean?" Sam narrowed his eyes in Emmett's direction.

"I mean that it should be us making that decision." Emmett spoke up, squaring his shoulders and standing tall as to appear bigger in size. "After all, you're the ones that violated it." He smirked. "Ever wonder how Bella found out about us to begin with?"

The Quileutes all looked alarmed and began looking at each other in confusion.

"We thought that you were the ones who had told her." Sam replied scrunching his eyebrows together.

Rose snorted and rolled her eyes. "Yeah, right." Esme shot her another disapproving glare.

"Are you aware of who told her?" Billy asked.

"It was your son." Carlisle sighed in exasperation; clearly he didn't want to bring this topic up at the present time.

Gasps were heard from everyone on the other side of the line, along with growls from Paul and Jared.

"So, what do you want to do about this?" Sam asked while giving Billy an evil eye.

I felt Lilly dig her fingers into the fabric of my long sleeve shirt. She didn't want to start trouble with the wolves and was holding her breath, even though she knew Carlisle wouldn't take the matter further than talking.

"We are going to excuse this breach in the treaty, but would appreciate it if you would please discuss the importance of the secrecy to your younger tribe members. If Bella was able to put two and two together, than I have no doubt that others would be able to as well." Carlisle explained. "You see, secrecy is very important to our kind and if our rulers found out that a human knows of our existence, it could be disastrous."

"Rulers? Vampires have royalty?" Sam asked in surprise, his eyebrows rising towards his hairline.

"Indeed, we do." Carlisle nodded. "We don't have many laws, but the laws we do have result in harsh consequences; one of those being that the human that knows must either be killed or changed."

Growls erupted from the two wolves, along with Sam beginning to shake.

"That is a direct violation of our treaty and one that we cannot and will not ignore!" Sam growled.

"Chill out," Rose rolled her eyes. "It's not like we're planning on changing her. He's just telling you what the consequences for a human learning of our existence are and what our rulers would do to any human who learns the truth."

I noticed that they still were not calming down, so I sent a burst of calm towards all of the Quileutes. Sam stopped shaking and the other two wolves growling quieted down, allowing us to finish our discussion.

"Do you understand why it is so vital for you all to keep our secret?" I asked, speaking up for the first time as I looked straight at Billy, remember what Edward said about him believing that the younger generation needed to know that the legends were real.

Billy sighed and put his head in his hands. "Yes."

"And what of the Swan girl's fate?" Harry Clearwater asked.

"Well, we are not going to force her into being changed, nor are we intending on breaking the treaty, if that is what you are asking." Lilly politely replied, still holding on to one of my arms that were behind my back with my hands clasped, as always.

"Exactly," Carlisle nodded. "We will just need to keep her knowledge of our kind a secret from our rulers. Alice will be able to let us know if they are planning a visit whenever that happens." He said looking towards Alice.

"That should work out just fine, as long as there is no trouble in the area that attracts the Volturi's attention." Alice confirmed.

"Being the large coven that we are, they would want to check up on us as a precaution. Not to mention our odd diet preferences." I added.

"Very well," Sam nodded absentmindedly. "If that is all then, we're out of here." He said, and then looked to the big gray wolf, I knew as Paul. "Ten minutes, then you're back on patrol."

Harry and old Quil helped Billy into the Gator while Sam ran to the tree line and came back in his wolf form. It was then that I noticed Paul ran off as soon as Sam was back next to Jared. Harry started up the Gator and put it in gear, and then began to drive on to the trail with Jared and Sam trailing after them.

Just as they hit the tree line, I noticed Paul striding out of the forest in his human form, wearing their usual pair of cutoff jeans. I could hear the other two wolves waiting for him just beyond the trees as backup in case he needed it.

"Are you good here, Jasper?" Carlisle asked, getting ready to run with Esme and Alice. Emmett and Rose were about 15 feet away talking in hushed tones, about what? I didn't care.

"Yeah, we're fine." I nodded, not taking my eyes off of Paul.

"Emmett and Rose are going to wait for you and Lillian. We'll meet you back at the house." He said and then took off before I could say another word.

Paul stopped in front of Lil and me, crossing his arms over his bare chest and smiled. "Hey Lilly," He greeted her, his emotions showing lust and adoration.

I bit back a growl, reminding myself that Lilly is mine and that I had to trust her to take care of herself. She would never betray me and I knew that it was me who she loved.

"Hey Paul," she beamed at him, clearly happy to see him to my annoyance. "How have you been?"

"Alright, I guess." He shrugged. "How about you?"

Lilly turned her head and looked at me with obvious love and happiness. "I've been wonderful." She said, and then turned her attention back to a frowning Paul. Jealousy was eating away at him, but the fact that he cared for Lilly kept him from making a fool out of himself and making a big deal out of her obvious preference for me.

He turned his attention to me and nodded his greeting. "Whitlock," he spat.

"Lahote," I acknowledged in distaste and matching his glare with one of my own.

Lilly looked back and forth between the two of us with a frown, before bringing our attention back to her as she spoke.

"Was there something you wanted to tell me Paul?" She asked sweetly.

He smiled at her, making me want to choke him with his obvious interest in her. "Yeah, I wanted to be the one to tell you that the elder's decided that if you ever wanted to come on to the reservation, that you would be welcome to." He grinned. "Well, with a wolf escort, of course."

"That's wonderful!" She clapped excitedly. "I will be sure to plan a visit then."

I bit back another growl before wrapping an arm around her stomach and pulled her back flush against my chest possessively. The Major in me did not like the way this mutt was acting towards my mate and needed reminding that she was mine and mine alone! Not to mention, I needed to take my mate back home to ravage her, reclaiming her as my own.

"Well, if that is all, then we must be going." I announced, keeping my eyes narrowed on Paul. It was clear that he didn't like me holding my mate as I am, but that was just too damn bad for him.

"Oh, yeah," Lilly nodded. "We need to head back and finish getting our bedroom squared away." She smirked, sending out lustful emotions, completely aware of why I was rushing to get her alone.

"Alright," Paul quipped, grinding his teeth together and keeping his eyes connected with mine. "Give me a call when you want to come down to the rez, Lilly. Otherwise, I'll talk to you soon."

"Okay Paul," She agreed. "Have a great rest of the day."

He broke eye contact with me and looked down at Lilly with a tender smile.

"You too," He replied, and then snapped his attention back up at me. "Whitlock," he bid me farewell.

"Lahote," I mimicked his farewell, watching as he looked wistfully at Lilly once more before sprinting off towards the tree line where his pack brothers awaited him.

**A/N:**** So, what did you think? Edward had his date with Bella and Lilly and the Cullen's had their meeting with the wolves regarding the breach in the treaty and the misunderstanding that Edward overheard. Next up will be Bella's day at the Cullen's house! **

**Read and Review! If you have any questions or comments, post them in my reviews and I will answer them in my next Author's Note! I love all of the reviews and comments so far, but don't be afraid to ask any questions or make any requests, as well! **

**If you enjoyed this story so far, check out some of my other stories on my FanFiction page! Also, I am still accepting Twilight stories that involve Jasper/any female leads or Bella/selected male leads if anyone is looking for a Beta Reader. I will make exceptions on the characters depending on the plot. PM me for details!  
><strong>_- Bella'Xo  
><em>**Xo BellaItalia oX**


	23. Chapter 20

**Disclaimer. ****All publicly recognizable characters, settings etc., are the property of their respective owners. The original characters, ideas and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended. I only do this for fun. –B**

**Chapter 20  
><strong>**(Edward's POV)**

The sun was setting as I drove Bella's truck back to her house after our wonderful afternoon together. Unfortunately, this tin can of a car wouldn't go above 60, so I had to keep to the speed limits. I was barely watching the road as I kept one hand on the steering wheel, the other holding Bella's against the seat. I was switching my gaze from the beautiful setting sun to Bella as I compared her beauty to the luminous rays of the ending daylight.

I couldn't get the kisses that we had out of my head and my lips were still tingling from the warmth of her lips. I couldn't help but wonder if this is what all mates felt when the touched or kissed, or was it just different for me since my mate was a human? Perhaps Jasper may feel that somewhat with Lilly, considering she is ¼ human. I would have to talk to my mated siblings to find out more on about this topic.

I turned the radio to and oldies station and began to sing along with some of the popular songs from the fifties. I began to laugh as I saw the look on Bella's face once she realized what we were listening to and that I knew every word to the songs.

"You like fifties music?" She asked incredulously.

"Music in the fifties was good. Much better than the sixties, or the seventies, ugh!" I shuddered. "The eighties were more bearable though."

"Are you ever going to tell me how old you are?" She asked in a tentative voice.

I looked over at her and smiled before turning my gaze back to the road. "Does it matter much?"

"No, but I still wonder…" She grimaced. "There's nothing like an unsolved mystery to keep you up at night."

"I wonder if it will upset you," I reflected to myself as I kept my gaze on the setting sun as the minutes passed in silence.

"Try me," She finally said.

I sighed and then looked in to her eyes, but keeping my other senses on the road. She had a look of determination, acceptance, and curiosity in her eyes and from that look, I knew that she will not be discouraged. She took everything else in stride so far, so I might as well be honest with the rest of my secrets.

"I was born in Chicago in 1901." I paused and glanced at her from the corner of my eyes. Her face didn't show any sign of surprise, but patience for the rest of my story. "Carlisle found me in a hospital in the summer of 1918. I was seventeen, and dying of the Spanish influenza."

I heard her quiet intake of breath, making me look down into her eyes again.

"I don't remember it well – it was a very long time ago, and human memories fade." I was lost in my thoughts for a short time before I continued. "I do remember how it felt, when Carlisle saved me. It's not an easy thing, not something you could forget."

"Your parents?" She asked calmly.

"They had already died from the disease. I was alone. That was why he chose me. In all the chaos of the epidemic, no one would ever realize that I was gone."

"How did he…save you?" She hesitantly asked.

I shut my eyes in exasperation. This was one topic that I wanted to stay away from; anything to do with the transformation from human to vampire. I did not want to plant any ideas in her head. I would not allow her to be damned to this life.

"If was difficult." I began, choosing my words carefully. "Not many of us have the restraint necessary to accomplish it. But Carlisle has always been the most humane, the most compassionate of us…I don't think you could find his equal throughout all of history." I paused. "For me, it was merely very, very painful."

I decided that that was all I would say on the subject of the transformation. I personally didn't want to think of it myself. Remembering the pain sent an involuntary shiver through my body and I shook off the direction my thoughts were heading as quickly as possible.

"He acted from loneliness." I said softly, clearly interrupting her thoughts. "That's usually the reason behind the choice. I was the first in Carlisle's family, though he found Esme soon after. She fell from a cliff. They brought her straight to the hospital morgue, though, somehow, her heart was still beating."

"So you must be dying, then, to become…" She trailed off.

"No, that's just Carlisle. He would never do that to someone who had another choice." I told her showing my profound respect for my father figure. "It is easier he says, though," I continued, "if the blood is weak." I looked at the now dark road, and I closed the subject once and for all…for now, I should say, if I know Bella like I think I do.

"And Emmett and Rosalie?"

"Carlisle brought Rosalie to our family next. I didn't realize till much later that he was hoping that she would be to me what Esme was to him, a mate or companion at the very least. He was very careful with his thoughts around me." I rolled my eyes. "But she was never more than a sister. It was only two years later that she found Emmett. She was hunting – we were in Appalachia at the time – and found a bear about to finish him off. She carried him back to Carlisle, more than a hundred miles, afraid she wouldn't be able to do it herself. I'm only beginning to guess how difficult that journey was for her." I threw a pointed glance in her direction and raised our hands, still folded together, to brush her cheek with the back of my hand.

"But she made it," Bella encouraged, looking away from me with a small smile on her face.

"Yes," I murmured. "She saw something in his face that made her strong enough. And they've been together ever since."

"She knew he was her mate." Bella stated.

"Exactly," I nodded. "Sometimes they live separately from us, as a married couple. But the younger we pretend to be, the longer we can stay in any given place. Forks seemed perfect, so we all enrolled in High School." I laughed. "I suppose we'll have to go to their wedding in a few years, again."

"Alice, Jasper, and Lilly?"

"The three of them are very rare creatures. Alice and Jasper developed a conscience, as we refer to it, with no outside guidance. Lilly used to drink human blood from criminals and those who harm others for their own selfish reasons. As I explained to you before, he gift insists that she periodically intakes human blood, same as Jasper now does. As soon as Lilly found out about the animal diet, she acted the same as Alice and Jasper and began to partake in the diet as her main source of blood intake.

"Jasper belonged to another…family, a very different kind of family. He became depressed, and he wandered on his own. Alice found him. Like me, Lilly and Jasper she has certain gifts above and beyond the norm for our kind."

"Yeah, Lilly told me about the rest of your family's gifts." She confirmed. "She mentioned how Alice can see the future."

"That's true. She knows other things. She sees things – things that might happen, things that are coming. But it's very subjective. The future isn't set in stone. Things change." I explained with my jaw set. My eyes darted to her face and away quickly so she wouldn't notice I looked at her to see how she was handling this. I kept expecting something to set her over the edge and be too much for her.

"What kind of things does she see?" She asked.

"She saw Jasper and knew that he was looking for her before he knew it himself. She knew he needed her help and that she would show him a way of life that he could live without depression and killing. She would also bring him to his true mate, or Lilly. She saw Carlisle and our family, and they came together to find us and knew that Lilly would come decades later. She always sees, for example, when another group of our kind is coming near. And any threat they may pose."

"Are there a lot of…your kind?" She asked in surprise.

"No, not many. But most won't settle in any one place. Only those like us, who've given up hunting you people" - I made a sly glance in her direction – "can live together with humans for any length of time. We've only found one other family like ours, in a small village in Alaska. We lived together for a time, but there were so many of us that we became too noticeable. Those of us who live…differently tend to band together."

"And the others?"

"Nomads, for the most part. We've all lived that way at times. It gets tedious, like anything else. But we run across the others now and then, because most of us prefer the North."

"Why is that?"

We were parked in front of her house now, and I turned off the truck. It was very quiet and dark and there was no moon in the sky. The porch light was off so it was clear that no one was home yet.

"Did you have your eyes open this afternoon?" I teased. "Do you think I could walk down the street in the sunlight without causing traffic accidents? There's a reason why we chose the Olympic Peninsula, one of the most sunless places in the world. It's nice to be able to go outside in the day. You wouldn't believe how tired you can get of nighttime in eighty-odd years."

"So that's where the legends came from?"

"Probably." I nodded.

"And Alice came from another family, like Jasper? What about Lilly?"

"No, Alice didn't, and that is a mystery." I revealed. "She doesn't remember her human life at all. And she doesn't know who created her. She awoke alone. Whoever made her walked away, and none of us understand why, or how, he could. If she hadn't had that other sense, if she hadn't seen Jasper and Carlisle and known that she would someday become one of us, she would probably have turned into a total savage." I paused, taking a deep unneeded breath, contemplating and then coming to a conclusion. "As for Lilly…her story is so very different and hard to explain unless she is the one explaining it. Even though I know each of my family's stories from their thoughts, I don't like to invade their privacy that way if I can help it. I think that their stories are theirs to tell and maybe they will tell you it someday."

She nodded her understanding and it became momentarily quiet. It was at this point that her stomach growled, making me laugh. "I'm sorry; I'm keeping you from dinner."

"I'm fine, really." She shook her head in denial.

"I've never spent much time around anyone who eats food, aside from Lilly once in a while, but I don't think that counts since she doesn't eat three meals a day or anything close, so I tend to forget." I apologized.

"I want to stay with you." She admitted softly.

I pursed my lips. "Can't I come in?" I asked.

"Would you like to?" She asked hopefully.

"Yes, if it's all right." I flitted quickly out my door and appeared outside of hers as I opened it for her.

"Very human," She complimented me.

"It's definitely resurfacing." I joked.

I walked beside her in the night, so quietly that I noticed her peaking at me constantly to be sure I was still there.

I reached the door ahead of her and opened it for her. She paused halfway through the frame.

"The door was unlocked?" She asked in confusion.

"No, I used the key from under the eve." I admitted sheepishly.

She stepped inside, flicked on the porch light, and turned to look at me with her eyebrows raised in a silent question.

"I was curious about you." I admitted.

"You spied on me?" She asked, obviously flattered which surprised me, once again. She always tends to surprise me with her reactions and the things that she does. It was one of the things that I really liked about her.

"What else is there to do at night?" I shrugged.

She didn't say anything more on the topic and went down the hall to the kitchen. I was there before her, not needing a guide or tour of the house since I've been here before. I sat in one of the chairs at the kitchen table and watched as she began to make her dinner.

**(Jasper's POV)**

It was early morning now as I lay in bed completely naked with my little flower curled up and wrapped around my body as I held her tightly. The flutter of her heart was lulling me into a state of complete and utter bliss as I realized that my life couldn't get any more perfect right now. It quickly became my most favorite sound in my world, right alongside with her angelic voice.

Lilly was currently taking a small cat nap as she always did once a week. I was envious of that ability, but I was hoping that one day I could get as close to it as I could. You never know!

I heard the front door open and close, making me realize that Edward must finally be home from Bella's. Lilly was proud of him, that he was able to spend the entire day with his singer and not try to take a bite out of her. I was just sick of hearing about that whole thing. Alice had been keeping an eye on them the entire day and continued to give her a play by play of their entire date until Rosalie snapped on her, telling her that she was sick and tired of hearing about the stupid human. Personally, I agreed with her on that. I still wasn't too thrilled with the idea of having a human know about our world, let alone begin to invade it. I didn't like how it put Lilly at risk and made my opinion of the subject known.

It made me feel a little bit better, knowing that Alice saw that since Edward didn't kill her yesterday, that he fate was sealed to be one of us. The sooner, the better, in my opinion, because I wanted Lilly out of risk as soon as possible, though I knew Edward wasn't so keen on the subject of Bella becoming one of us. The whole things just royally pissed me off.

I could feel Lilly begin to stir and then stretch her body out like a kitten, making soft little noises that I found so incredibly cute. She opened her eyes and began to rub the sleep out of them blinking a few times before she looked up at me and gave me a small smile. I smiled back at her and leaned down a placed a chaste kiss on her soft pink lips before pulled back and running my fingers through her long brown curls.

"Hi," I greeted her, still looking in to her beautiful hazel eyes.

"Hey baby," she grinned in return and pushed her love and adoration towards me making my heart begin to swell.

"Mmm…I love you too, Darlin'." I said and pulled her tightly against my chest with my face in the hollow of her neck over my mark and took in her scent. I could feel her doing the same to me as she ran the tip of her nose over her mating mark, sending a burst of euphoric feelings throughout my body and a shiver down my spine.

She pulled back first and still had a small smile on her beautiful face. "So, what do want to do today?" She asked, sleep still in her voice.

"Hmmm…" I began to think. "Well, we could work on your gift as well if you would like, now that we know for sure that it can be made stronger? Lilith really seemed to know what she was doing and if she can do it, than you can do it."

"Yeah, that sounds like a great idea! I always wanted to get a handle on my gift, but never had any one to help me work on it, considering no one could know about it." She sighed.

"Well now you have plenty of people who know about it who I'm sure would love to help you." I smirked and gave her a squeeze before pulling her out of the bed and to the shower to get ready for the day.

We were all dressed and ready for the day. Lilly looked amazing as always, wearing a light faded jean skirt with a tight pink t-shirt and grey vest. Her long hair was pulled half up and half down into beautiful rhinestone clips with matching jewelry. I was wearing a pair of light faded jeans with a grey long sleeve shirt that matched Lil's vest. Lil pulled me down the stairs and into the kitchen where Esme was unloading a bunch of human food as Edward was sitting on a stool at the breakfast bar. I gave Esme a questioning look as to why she bought so much human food, knowing that Lilly only at that stuff once a week.

"Hey Edward!" She grinned and kissed his cheek in greeting. I bit back a growl, hating that she kissed him, even if it didn't mean anything. I never said anything about it though, knowing that it was just how she was raised, considering Canada's population is mainly French. "Did you have fun with Bella yesterday?"

"Yeah," He nodded with a love struck smile at the mention of his human mate's name.

"Speaking of which, I wanted to let you know how proud I am of you." She happily congratulated him. "I knew you could do it."

"Thanks," Edward said. "It was a lot easier than I thought it would be. More like mind over matter."

"I'm glad." Lilly said bumping his shoulder with hers. "You'll have to tell me all about it later." She said before hopping off the chair next to Edward and bouncing over to Esme to help her with the last of the human food that she was putting away.

Rose and Emmett appeared in the kitchen followed by Carlisle since he just got home from working the night shift at the hospital. He kissed Esme's cheek and set his brief case down on the kitchen counter, leaning on the counter to overlook the room.

"Where've you been all night?" Emmett asked the second that he spotted Edward, who eyed him as if to say 'everything is fine, but please don't press me for details.' "Seriously, man. We've all been worried. What happened yesterday?"

"Yeah, how did your big day with the human go?" Rose chimed in sarcastically. "Did you actually manage _not_ to kill her?"

"What's it to you?" Edward snapped. "I thought you wanted me to just get it over with."

"I don't want to move again, Edward!" She yelled.

Edward smirked at her, not saying any more as Alice flitted down the stairs and in to the kitchen. "Of course he didn't kill her, Rose. I told you, he loves her!"

"Yeah, have a little faith." Lilly said putting an arm around her shoulder and giving her an affectionate squeeze.

Rose just rolled her eyes, most likely insulting Edward in her head after giving Lilly a small smile.

"Oh, that's right," I added, annoyed that all of this was happening at all. "You're in love with her now. And I thought I had problems controlling myself."

He glared at me as Lilly gave me a pleading look and Emmett doubled over in laughter. "So how's that going anyway?" he chuckled trying to contain his laughter.

"Alice, I assume you'll fill them all in," Edward said sourly, racing out of the room as Emmett started to make a very inappropriate joke at his expense.

Alice went on to tell us all of the highlights of Edward's day with Bella yesterday. I guess it was impressive that he was able to get as close to her as he did without taking a bite out of her. Carlisle and Esme were beaming the entire time as she went on to tell them about Edward deciding to stay the night at Bella's with her knowledge for a change.

After she finished with her explanation, Carlisle disappeared out of the kitchen, most likely to talk to Edward about everything that was learned as we hung out and chatted absentmindedly. I pulled Lilly against my chest and wrapped my arms around her as we laughed at something Emmett was saying.

About twenty minutes later, Edward appeared back into the kitchen, freshly showered and changed for the day. He leaned on the frame of the entryway with his arms crossed over his chest as he listened to the conversation. He was anxious about something and I was sure that we would be finding out why very shortly.

"Esme, would you mind if I brought Bella over today?" Edward asked as I snapped my attention to Edward in shock that he wanted to bring a human to the one place that I didn't have to worry so much about my thirst and human façade.

Esme's face beamed. "Of course! Oh, Edward, this is so wonderful! I was wondering why Alice insisted I go shopping for all of this human food! I knew Lilly didn't eat anywhere near this much, but it all makes sense now!" She flew to his side and cupped his face with her hands and kissed both of his cheeks making him chuckle.

Well, I guess that answers why all of this human food is now in the house.

She gave Edward another squeeze before releasing him and turning her attention to the rest of us. "Come, now! Let's make the house presentable for our guest! Boys, pick up your chess boards, please!" She began flying around the living room, fluffing pillows and straightening out any blankets or loose objects.

Emmett grumbled as he and I began to gather up our mock battle field as Rosalie sat stiffly down in the lazy boy chair, scowling around the room. Lilly was speeding around the room with Windex as she helped with the dusting at vampire speed.

Edward appeared beside me and pulled me to the side. "Make sure that you don't get too close to Bella. I know that you started this new diet and all, but I don't want to risk Bella's safety. Especially since you will be feeding off of everyone's blood lust towards her, especially mine for my singer." He paused and looked at me solemnly. "I'm not saying this to be mean or cause any problems; it's just that I want to take any precautions necessary."

I sighed and nodded my head. "I understand, Edward. I would be just as cautious with Lilly if she had human blood in her veins. I'll make sure to give her a wide birth."

"Thanks, brother." He said giving me a manly pat on the back and continued to help clean up the house.

Alice flitted over to Edward's side and began to look him up and down. "I guess this outfit will due for today." She smiled before getting pulled in to a vision.

"Will Bella be safe tonight?" Edward asked once Alice came back to the present.

"As far as I can tell, she will be." She said confidently. "You will be with her, so I don't see a problem."

"What did you see?" Lilly asked as she took my hand in hers.

"I saw three vampires in our region. They looked to be nomadic, perhaps with a bond to each other. One of them is going to catch our scent along the border. If they keep up their current pace, they should be here tomorrow."

Lilly absentmindedly nodded, running her hand up and down my fore arm. I smile down at her and placed a kiss on her lips.

"So what, are you spending nights at the human's house now?" Rose asked through gritted teeth as she still sat in the chair with her arms folded over her chest, clearly refusing to help with the cleaning since it was for Bella.

"Didn't you know, he's been spending nights there for a while? Just…now she knows that he's there," Emmett laughed loudly as Lilly gave him a disapproving look and shook her head.

Edward snapped, lunging at Emmett and knocking him to the floor. He managed to get a hit in before Emmett was able to get him when he wasn't expecting it and pinned him to the floor.

"Why so touchy?" he smirked and Alice giggled.

"Alice, a word please?" Edward said sourly as Emmett let him up.

"Of course," she smiled, streaking out of the room. Edward followed her as he glared at the rest of us, excluding Lilly who let out a loud sigh of exasperation.

We all stayed quiet as we listened to the conversation in the other room between _Edward_ and Alice, anxious to overhear what made him snap. Rose exited the room as well and made her way back in to the kitchen where Esme had disappeared to, most likely still cleaning up for Bella.

"_Don't be mad at me?"_ She pleaded as soon as they got in to the other room.

"_I'm not mad,"_ He lied. _"I just would have thought you'd have shown a little more respect for Bella. You are still planning on being friends with her, aren't you?"_

There was a brief silence where I assumed that Alice was saying something in her head to Edward before he spoke again.

"_Alice, I just wish you would keep your thoughts to yourself. Don't you think it's embarrassing enough, my knowing you can see everything that happens between us? Aren't we allowed a little privacy?"_

I couldn't blame him on that one, but I knew that if I was going to do something with Lilly that I didn't want Alice to see, I would just have Lil use her gift on Alice so that she wasn't able to look in to our future for an allotted time.

"_I was just looking out for her, Edward," _She said sulkily. _"I thought you wanted me to keep an eye on Bella's future."_

"_I do, Just maybe don't keep quite so close an eye when I'm with her. And don't repeat everything you see to everyone else."_

"_But I thought…" _She trailed off.

"_I know. We both thought I was the greatest danger in her life. And maybe I still am. But after yesterday…I don't know, it doesn't really feel like it anymore. Now I'm more,"_ He paused. _"I guess now I'm more worried about something happening to her when I'm not there to protect her. She's so fragile. I can hardly stand to let her out of my sight."_

I heard Alice move and kiss his cheek._ "Then what are you still doing here?"_ She asked wryly. _"Go back to her. And I promise to try my very hardest to keep my head out of it."_

"_Thank you,"_ He said sincerely.

I could hear Alice as she turned to leave, but then added, _"Oh, and Edward?"_

"_Yes?"_

"_Go out the back. They're still not done making jokes you probably don't want to hear."_ She suggested and Emmett smirked evilly, causing me to laugh as he disappeared out of the room, going the same way that Rosalie did.

"_Thanks for the tip."_ Edward sighed.

Moments later, Alice appeared back in the room at the same time as Esme, who had a glum look on her face.

"What's wrong, Esme?" I asked.

"Rosalie left. She said she wouldn't be in the same room as Bella. Emmett just went after her to try to convince her to come back." She shook her head. "I don't understand, after all of this time, how she could still hold a grudge against Edward like this. She should be glad that he has finally found someone, that he's finally happy again." She shook her head again, her caramel color hair moving with the motions.

"Oh, well I'm sure she will come around eventually." Lilly said with a hopeful smile. I didn't want to bust her bubble, knowing Rose. If she did manage to get over the whole Bella and Edward situation, I doubt it will be any time soon.

"Come on, Lee." I said, pulling her by her hand out of the room, trying to get her mind on something else. "Let's go work on that gift of yours for now."

"Okay!" She grinned and picked up her pace to match mine as we made it back up to my room and opened the doors to my balcony. We then jumped up and in to the nearest try and continued to climb until we got to our favorite branch where we would always sit and talk as the cool breeze blew through her beautiful brown hair and got ready to work.

**A/N:**** So, what did everyone think about the chapter? Will Bella's visit with the Cullen's go well? Uh oh! James and his coven are brought in to the mix now! What will their reactions be to Lilly and Bella? **

**Read and Review! If you have any questions or comments, post them in my reviews for the story and I will answer them in my next Author's Note! **

**Dalonega Noquisi:**** Good Chap! (Ch 19) And it had my second fav character, Paul! I love him ;) If the Cullen's leave Lilly behind, will Paul be her shoulder to cry on?**

_I know I haven't really elaborated much on Paul and Lilly's relationship and I haven't for a reason. I don't want to spoil the story and answer if he has imprinted on her or not, nor if the Cullen's are going to leave Lilly behind in the Sequel, but their relationship will become very strong in the future and I promise you will find out more about their relationship and what will happen between the two in the future; if not in this book, but the next few stories. _

**If you enjoyed this story so far, check out some of my other stories on my FanFiction page! Also, I am still accepting Twilight stories that involve Jasper/any female leads or Bella/selected male leads if anyone is looking for a Beta Reader. I will make exceptions on the characters depending on the plot. PM me for details!  
><strong>_- Bella'Xo  
><em>**Xo BellaItalia oX**


	24. Chapter 21

**Disclaimer. ****All publicly recognizable characters, settings etc., are the property of their respective owners. The original characters, ideas and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended. I only do this for fun. –B**

**Chapter 21  
><strong>**(Lilly's POV)**

"Okay, now concentrate, Darlin'." Jasper encouraged me, holding an egg corn in his right hand and trying to get me to teleport it to his left hand without the use of levitation. "Picture the egg corn in my left hand and gone from my right."

I continued to do exactly as he instructed as I sat in between his legs with my back against his chest. He's had plenty of experience working with gifted vampires when he was working for Maria in her army, so he knows what he was talking about. So far, I had successfully teleported a small piece of bark about a foot, and now I was doing a larger object to a further distance. I kept reminding myself that if Lilith can do it, than I can as well, because we are one in the same. Jasper said that it was a good thing to think about when I got discouraged.

Finally, after another two minutes of concentrating solely on the egg corn, I watched as it disappeared from Jasper's right hand and in to his left.

"Great job, sweet heart!" Jasper praised, wrapping his arms tightly around me and kissing his mark on my neck. The feeling sent a shiver of desire and euphoria through my body as it always does whenever attention is paid to his mark. "Pretty soon, you'll be able to teleport me from the other side of the world to right in front of you. We'll never have to use a plane again!"

"I don't know about that." I chuckled, shaking my head. "They say that the journey is the best part of the trip."

"True," I could feel him smirking against my shoulder.

We kept on practicing for the next hour until we heard Alice squeal as she danced around the second floor. "They're here! They're here!" She chirped excitedly.

I laughed quietly to myself and shook my head at her antics, but my laughter then ceased when I felt Jasper tense behind me. I turned to look at him and saw an almost nervous, panicked expression gracing his features.

I fixed myself so that I was now completely facing him and straddling his waist. I brought his attention to me by placing my hand around his neck, resulting in him looking straight at me.

"_Qu'est-ce__qui ne va pas__, __ma chérie__?_ " **(What's wrong, my darling?) **I asked him in concern.

He sighed and looked down. It was as if he was not able to look me in the eyes as he told me.

"What if I can't control myself?" He whispered. "Her blood is so enticing…what if I slip? Edward will never forgive me and neither will you if I hurt your best friend." He looked up at me, his eyes full of anguish. "I can't bear to disappoint you or the family again."

"Oh, baby, that will never happen." I said with conviction. "You could demolish an entire town and I will still stand behind you. Nothing you do could disappoint me, because I know the type of man you are and you would never do something like that now. If it was a mistake, I can't hold something like that against you; everyone makes mistakes. All I ask is that you try. I will be there with you every step of the way to help and support you."

He lightly cupped my jaw and ran his thumb across my cheek bone. "Promise?" he asked as he did this.

"Always," I nodded giving him an encouraging smile.

"Okay, then." Jasper said with a crooked smile. "Let me get my bearings and then we will go in and say 'hello.'"

He pulled me flush against his chest so that my heart would beat against his in the way that I knew always calmed him in every way. He always told me that my heart beat was his favorite sound in the world and it always relaxed him and made him as content as he could ever be.

We sat like this in silence as I listened as Edward helped Bella out of his Volvo. I could almost picture their facial expressions as I overheard them move and talk.

**(Bella's POV)**

"Wow," I gasped as I took in the Cullen's home for the first time.

I don't know what I expected, but it certainly wasn't this. The house was timeless, graceful, and probably a hundred years old. It was painted a soft, faded white, three stories tall- not including the basement- rectangular and well proportioned. The windows were either part of the original structure or a perfect restoration. Some of the walls were even completely made of glass, making it easy to see directly into the whole room. My truck was the only car in sight. I could hear the river close by, hidden in the obscurity of the forest.

"You like it?" Edward smiled.

"It…has a certain charm." I complimented.

He pulled the end of my ponytail and chuckled.

"Lilly had the same reaction." he said, opening my door. "Ready?"

"Not even a little bit – let's go." I tried to laugh, but it seemed to get stuck in my throat. I smoothed my hair nervously.

"You look lovely." He took my hand easily, without even thinking about it.

We walked through the deep shade up to the porch. I knew he could feel my tension; his thumb rubbed soothing circles into the back of my hand.

He opened the door for me.

The inside was even more surprising, less predictable, than the exterior. It was very bright, very open, and very large. This must have originally been several rooms, but the walls had been removed from most of the first floor to create one wide space. The back, south-facing wall had been entirely replaced with glass, and, beyond the shade of the cedars, the lawn stretched bare to the wide river. A massive curving staircase dominated the west side of the room. The walls, the high-beamed ceiling, the wooden floors, and the thick carpets were all varying shades of white.

"It's so light and open in here." I observed out loud.

Edward chuckled. "Well, what did you expect; coffins and dungeons and moats?"

"No, not the moats." I smirked.

"Not the moats." Edward repeated, shaking his head in silent laughter.

Waiting to greet us, standing just to the left of the door, on a raised portion of the floor by a spectacular grand piano, were Edward's parents.

I'd seen Dr. Cullen before, of course, yet I couldn't help but be struck by his youth, his outrageous perfection. At his side was Esme, I assumed, the only one of the family I'd never seen before. She had the same pale, beautiful features as the rest of them. The same as Lilly had, aside from the bright, hazel eyes that seemed to change with her mood, where the rest of them had various shades of gold. Something about Esme's heart-shaped face, her billows of soft caramel hair, reminded me of the ingénues of the silent-movie era. She was small, slender, yet less angular, more rounded than the others.

They were both dressed casually, in light colors that matched the inside of the house. They smiled in welcome, but made no move to approach us. Trying not to frighten me, I guessed.

"Carlisle, Esme," Edward's voice broke the short silence as I continued to take everything in. "This is Bella."

"You're very welcome, Bella." Carlisle's step was measured carefully as he approached me. He raised his hand tentatively, and I stepped forward with determination and slight nervousness to shake his hand.

"It's nice to see you again, Dr. Cullen."

"Please, call me Carlisle."

"Carlisle," I grinned at him, trying it on for size. My sudden confidence surprised me and I could feel Edward's relief at my side.

Esme smiled and stepped forward as well, reaching for my hand. He cold, stone grasp was just as I expected. "It's very nice to know you," she said sincerely.

"Thank you. I'm glad to meet you, too." And I was. It was like meeting a fairy tale – Snow White, in the flesh.

"Where are Alice, Lilly and Jasper?" Edward asked, but no one answered, as Alice just appeared at the top of the wide stair case.

"Hey, Edward!" Alice called enthusiastically. She ran down the stairs, a streak of black hair and white skin, coming to a sudden graceful stop in front of me. Carlisle and Esme shot warning glances at her, but I liked it. It was natural – for her, anyway.

"Hi, Bella!" Alice said, and she bounced forward to kiss my cheek. If Carlisle and Esme had looked cautious before, they now looked staggered. There was shock in my eyes, too, but I was also very pleased that someone besides Lilly seemed to approve of me so entirely. I was startled to feel Edward stiffen at my side. I glanced at his face, but it was unreadable.

"You do smell nice, I never noticed before," she commented, to my extreme embarrassment.

It was then that Lilly and Jasper appeared through one of the large window/walls that was slid open, almost like a sliding glass door. A large cedar tree was right up against the house and they seemed to walk along the branch as if they were walking across the regular hard wood floor.

Lilly hopped through the window first, followed by Jasper as she held on to his hand and drug him across the room towards the rest of us.

**(Lilly's POV)**

"Hey Bells!" I grinned at my best friends, letting go of Jasper's hand as I walked the last few steps up to Bella and pulled her in to a tight hug that she returned eagerly.

"Hi Lee," she responded, giving me an extra squeeze before pulling back with a wide smile.

"Don't mind Alice," I joked, referring to Alice's comment about her scent, "she's a little eccentric."

"Hey!" Alice pouted, crossing her tiny arms over her small body.

"Oh, you are and you like it!" Edward grinned, causing Alice to break her façade and smile a bit.

"Bella," I said getting her attention and grabbing Jasper's hand, pulling him a bit closer towards her. "This is my mate, Jasper."

"Hello, Bella," Jasper said, but he kept his distance, not offering to shake her hand. But it was impossible to feel awkward near him, and I could tell Bella felt the same way.

"Hello, Jasper." She smiled at him shyly, and then back at the others again. "It's nice to meet you all – you have a very beautiful home," she added conventionally.

"Thank you," Esme said, clearly pleased that Bella liked it, considering she designed and decorated everything herself. "We're so glad that you came. Lilly and Edward speak very highly of you." She spoke with feeling, and I realize that she thought that Bella was brave. I didn't doubt that, either. After all, she was in a house full of seven vampires and a Dhampir.

As I looked around, I realized that Rosalie and Emmett were nowhere to be seen and I couldn't sense them in the immediate vicinity. I remembered what Esme had said about Rosalie running off earlier and Emmett going to try to talk to her, but it appears that he either wasn't successful, they were still speaking, or they were still…'speaking,' if you want to call it that. You never know with those two. They had a very healthy sexual appetite; then again…Jasper and I weren't much better.

Carlisle's expression distracted me from this train of thought; he was gazing meaningfully at Edward with an intense expression. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Edward discretely nod once. I realized that he must be informing him about Rosalie and Emmett's probable whereabouts and Rose's tantrum earlier. You could clearly see Edward's displeasure and disappointment in his expression, before he quickly changed it; most likely for Bella's sake.

I looked away and noticed that Bella's attention had wandered to Edward's beautiful piano on the platform by the door. Esme seemed to also notice Bella's preoccupation.

"Do you play?" she asked, inclining her head toward the piano.

She shook her head. "No, not at all. But it's so beautiful. Is it yours?"

"No," she laughed. "Edward didn't tell you he was musical?"

"No," she glared at Edward's suddenly innocent expression with narrowed eyes. "I should have known, I guess."

Esme raised her delicate eyebrows in confusion.

"Edward can do everything, right?" She explained.

Jasper snickered and Esme gave Edward a reproving look as I turned to look at Jasper, trying to hide my amusement from the rest of them. "I hope you haven't been showing off – it's rude," Esme scolded.

"Just a bit," he laughed freely. Her face softened at the sound, and they shared a brief look that I knew meant that she was happy that her first son was so carefree and joyous, though at the same time, her face almost seemed smug.

"He's been too modest, actually," Bella corrected.

"Well, play for her," Esme encouraged.

"You just said showing of was rude," he objected.

"There are exceptions to every rule," she replied with an abet smile.

"I'd like to hear you play," Bella volunteered.

"It's settled then." Esme pushed him toward the piano. He pulled Bella along, sitting her on the bench beside him.

He gave her a long, exasperated look before he turned to the keys.

And then his fingers flowed swiftly across the ivory, and the room was filled with composition so complex, so luxuriant, it was impossible to believe that only one set of hands played. I always loved to listen to him play, and sometimes play along in a duet with him. It was one of the many things that we shared together; our love of music.

I watched as Bella's chin dropped and her mouth opened up in astonishment. Jasper chuckled from behind me as he wrapped his arms around my waist and rested his chin on my shoulder as we stood at the entrance way to the music room and watched along with everybody else as Edward played for the woman he loved.

Edward looked at Bella casually, the music still surging around us without a break and winked. "Do you like it?"

"You wrote this?" She gasped in understanding.

He nodded. "It's Esme's favorite."

He then looked over his shoulder at me and gave me a nod, telling me to join him.

I looked up at Jasper and placed a kiss on his lips before I made my way over to the piano bench to sit on the other side of Edward.

I listened as he changed the tune and I immediately picked up the song that he was playing. It was a song that we composed last week after the first night that we visited Bella to work on his control.

I began to play with him, letting my fingers glided over the keys, letting the music flow out of the instrument. When we played this composition, I always pictured all of us running through the forest at vampire speed, laughing as we danced around the trees.

"Lilly and I wrote this last week." Edward explained to Bella as he looked from the keys to her.

"I love it." She smiled, watching our fingers play.

We continued for a few more moments and got to the part where the speed picks up and the tune changes a bit. I saw out of the corner of my eye as Bella closed her eyes and shook her head.

"What's wrong?" Edward asked her concerned.

"I'm feeling extremely insignificant."

Edward looked over at me and I immediately knew what he wanted as we slowed the song to the point where I stopped playing and he began to transform the music into something softer, and clearly detected as a lullaby, weaving through the profusion of notes.

"You inspired this one," he said softly as the music grew unbearably sweet.

She couldn't speak.

I quietly got off of the bench and flitted in to Jasper's arms and he pulled me around the corner, leaving only Esme, Bella and Edward as we collapsed on to the couch, still in each other's arms.

"See? That wasn't so bad and you were okay." I smiled affectionately at him, pushing my pride at the small accomplishment towards him.

He smiled back a loving smile and placed a chaste kiss on my lips. "You're right, though I she still has one of the sweetest smelling scents I've ever smelled from a human."

"I can't disagree with you on that one, _Amoureux._ " **(Sweetheart)** I nodded. "But that only makes my pride in you that much more."

He grinned and kissed my temple before he leaned over to the coffee table and picked up the remote for the television and put on an interesting documentary on the different kinds of battleships that were used for the all of the major wars throughout history.

About an hour later and about 15 minutes in to the 'Top 10 Fighter Jets,' Alice appeared in front of the TV practically bouncing on her heals.

"Guess what?" She asked. "It's going to thunder storm tonight!"

"Really?" Jasper asks sitting up a little straighter. Alice nods enthusiastically as Jasper shifts me in his arms. "Awesome!"

"Who else is playing?" I asked.

"Well, Emmett and Rose just got back and they are both in, plus you two and myself, and I was just getting ready to go and ask Edward if he wants to join. Want to come?" She asked.

I look to Jasper and he lets out a sigh before nodding at my eager expression before helping me up off the couch and following behind Alice and I as we make our way to the staircase.

**(Jasper's POV)**

There was growls and laughing coming from inside of Edward's room, followed by a lot of commotion. I looked at Lilly in confusion and she just shrugged and continued to follow behind Alice down the hall to Edward's door.

"_You were saying?"_ Edward growled playfully.

"_That you are a very, very terrifying monster,"_ Bella said, sarcasm marred a bit by her breathless voice.

"_Much better,"_ Edward approved.

"_Um…_" I could hear Bella attempt to struggle. _"Can I get up now?"_

He just laughed before Alice knocked on his door.

"Can we come in?" Alice asked opening the door.

Bella continued to struggle to free herself, but Edward merely readjusted her so that she was somewhat more conventionally seated on his lap. Her cheeks began to flush as her blush burned her cheeks, but Edward seemed at ease.

"Go ahead." Edward said still chuckling quietly

Alice and Lilly seemed to find nothing unusual in their embrace; Alice danced to the center of the room, where she folded herself sinuously onto the floor, while Lilly walked in and took a seat on his couch. I, however, paused at the door, my expression a trifle shocked. How was Edward able to be so close and act so freely with his singer? How was he able to hold her so close to him? I mean, I can feel his blood lust, and yet, he is still able to hold her like that.

"It sounded like you were having Bella for lunch, and we came to see if you would share," Alice announced, breaking me out of my inner musings.

Lilly giggled, while Bella stiffened for an instant, until she looked at Edward and saw that he was grinning – whether at Alice's comment or at Bella's response, I couldn't tell.

"Sorry, I don't believe I have enough to spare," he replied, his arms holding her recklessly close.

"Actually," I said, smiling despite myself as I walked into the room, "Alice says there's going to be a real storm tonight, and Emmett wants to play ball. Are you game?" I asked eager for some active fun.

Edward's eyes lit up, but he hesitated.

"Of course you should bring Bella," Alice chirped.

I threw a quick glance at Alice in surprise, and then at Lilly, who seemed pleased with the idea and decided to just let it go for now. It seemed to make Lilly happy, regardless of what Alice was thinking, and I would do anything to make her smile as much as possible. Besides, if we were going to be outside, her scent shouldn't be as strong out there.

"Do you want to go?" Edward asked her, excitement clear in his expression.

"Sure." She smiled shyly. "Um, where are we going?"

"We have to wait for thunder to play ball – you'll see why," Lilly promised.

"Will I need an umbrella?" Bella asked and all four of us laughed aloud.

"Will she?" I asked Alice, trying to get an answer to Bella's question.

"No." She was positive. "The storm will hit over town. It should be dry enough in the clearing."

"Good, then." I said enthusiasm beginning to flow from me through my gift. Realizing this, I pulled it back after seeing Bella begin to become eager, rather than scared stiff.

"Let's go see if Carlisle will come." Alice bounded up and to the door in a fashion that would break any ballerina's heart.

"Like you don't know," Lilly teased, taking my offered hand and pulling herself off of the couch. We walked out of the door and I managed to inconspicuously close the door behind us.

**A/N:**** So that was Bella's first meeting with the Cullen's. What did you think? I hope you enjoyed it! Next will be the baseball game and their run-in with the Nomads! Dun Dun Dunnnnn!**

**Read and Review! If you have any questions or comments, post them in the reviews and I will answer them in my next Author's Note!**

**If you enjoyed this story so far, check out some of my other stories on my FanFiction page! Also, I am still accepting Twilight stories that involve Jasper/any female leads or Bella/selected male leads if anyone is looking for a Beta Reader. I will make exceptions on the characters depending on the plot. PM me for details!  
><strong>_- Bella'Xo  
><em>**Xo BellaItalia oX**


	25. Chapter 22

**Disclaimer. ****All publicly recognizable characters, settings etc., are the property of their respective owners. The original characters, ideas and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended. I only do this for fun. –B**

**Chapter 22  
><strong>**(Bella POV)**

It was just beginning to drizzle when Edward turned on to my street. Up until that moment, I'd had no doubt that he'd be staying with me while I spent a few interim hours in the real world. And then I saw the black car, a weathered Ford, parked in Charlie's driveway – and heard Edward mutter something unintelligible in a low, harsh voice.

Leaning away from the rain under the shallow front porch, Jacob Black stood behind his father's wheelchair. Billy's face was impassive as stone as Edward parked my truck against the curb. Jake stared down, his expression mortified.

"This is crossing the line." Edward muttered in a low furious voice.

"He came to warn Charlie?" I guessed, more horrified than angry.

Edward just nodded, answering Billy's steady gaze through the rain with narrowed eyes.

"But I thought you said that your family spoke to the Quileutes about why the existence of your species must remain a secret?" I asked confused.

"They did, he is doing this behind the packs back, and only intends to speak to Charlie about it." Edward gritted out.

I felt weak with relief that Charlie wasn't home yet.

"Let me deal with this," I suggested. Edward's black glare made me anxious.

To my surprise, he agreed. "That's probably best. Be careful, though. The child has no idea." He warned.

I bridled a little at the word 'child.' "Jacob is not that much younger than I am," I reminded him with my eyebrows creased.

He looked at me then, his anger abruptly fading. "Oh, I know," he assured me with a grin. I sighed and put my hand on the door handle.

"Get them inside," he instructed, staying inside of my truck, "so I can leave. I'll be back around dusk."

"Do you want my truck?" I offered, meanwhile wondering how I would explain its absence to Charlie.

He rolled his eyes. "I could walk home faster than this truck moves."

I ignored his comment about my truck and looked at him wistfully. "You don't have to leave."

He smiled at my glum expression. "Actually, I do. After you get rid of them" - he threw another dark glance in the Black's direction – "you still have to prepare Charlie to meet your new boyfriend." He grinned widely, showing all of his teeth.

I groaned. "Thanks a lot."

He smiled the crooked smile that I loved. "I'll be back soon," he promised. His eyes flickered back to the porch once more, and then he leaned in to swiftly kiss me just under the edge of my jaw. My heart lurched frantically, and I, too, glanced towards the porch. Billy's face was no longer impassive, and his hands were clutched at the armrests of his chair.

"Soon," I stressed as I opened the door and stepped out into the rain. I could feel his eyes on my back as I half-ran through the light sprinkle towards the porch.

"Hey, Billy. Hi, Jacob." I greeted them as cheerfully as I could manage. "Charlie's gone for the day – I hope you haven't been waiting long?"

"Not long," Billy said in a subdued tone, his black eyes piercing. "I just wanted to bring this up." He indicated to a brown paper bag that was resting on his lap. I knew from the looks of it that it had to be Harry Clearwater's famous homemade fish fry, Charlie's favorite.

"Thanks," I said with a grateful smile. "Why don't you come in for a minute and dry off?" I offered, unlocking the door. I pretended to be oblivious to his intense scrutiny as I waved them in ahead of me.

"Here, let me take that," I offered, turning to shut the door. I allowed myself one last glance at Edward. He was waiting, perfectly still, his eyes solemn.

"You'll want to put that in the fridge," Billy noted as he handed me the package. "The fridge keeps it drier." He shrugged.

"Thanks," I repeated, but with feeling this time. "I was running out of new ways to fix fish, and he's bound to bring home more tonight."

"Fishing again?" Billy asked with a subtle gleam in his eye. "Down at the usual spot? Maybe I'll run by and see him."

Panicked, I thought quickly on my feet, but made sure not to let Billy see my anxiousness.

"No, he was headed someplace new…" I quickly lied, my face going hard, "but I have no idea where."

He took my changed expression, and it made him thoughtful.

"Jake," he said, his eyes still appraising me. "Why don't you go get that new picture of Rebecca out of the car? I'll leave that for Charlie, too."

"Where is it?" Jacob asked, his voice morose. I glanced at him, but he was staring at the floor, his eyebrows pulling together.

"I think I saw it in the truck," Billy said. "You may have to dig for it."

Jake slouched back out into the rain, clearly unhappy with his father's request, but willing to do it, since Billy could not. I wasn't sure if he knew that he was just trying to get him out of the room or not, and I wasn't worried about that. Only that Billy and I get this straightened out, and fast.

We faced each other in silence and after a few seconds, the quiet started to feel awkward as my impatience began to rise, but I knew that he needed to be the one to begin. I turned and headed towards the kitchen, trying to make myself seem more oblivious to the topic that was slowly rising to the surface. I could hear his wet wheels squeak against the linoleum as he followed. I shoved the fish fry on to the crowded top shelf of the fridge and spun around to confront him, hoping for him to start, even if I need to push him in the right direction. His deeply lined face was unreadable.

"Charlie won't be back for a long time." My voice was almost rude as that statement came out.

He nodded in agreement, but still said nothing.

"Thanks again for the fish fry," I hinted.

He continued nodding. I sighed and folded my arms across my chest in exasperation and he seemed to sense that I had given up on small talk. "Bella," he said and then he hesitated.

I waited.

"Bella," he said again, "Charlie is one of my best friends."

"Yes," I pressed as I continued to stare him down.

He spoke each word carefully in his rumbling voice. "I noticed you've been spending time with one of the Cullen's."

"Yes," I repeated curtly. "And I spend a lot of time with my best friend Lilly as well."

His eyes narrowed. "It's not Lilly I have a problem with and maybe it's none of my business, but I don't think that hanging out with the Cullen's is such a good idea."

"You're right," I agreed. "It is none of your business."

He raised his graying eyebrows at my tone. "You are aware that the Cullen family has an…unpleasant reputation on the reservation."

"Yes, I am aware," I informed him in a hard voice that surprised him. "But that reputation couldn't be deserved, could it? Because the Cullen's never set foot on the reservation, do they?" I could see that my less than subtle reminder of the agreement that both bound and protected his tribe pulled him up short.

"That's true," he acceded, his eyes remained guarded. "You seem…well informed about the Cullen's. More informed than I expected, to be honest."

I stared him down. "Maybe even better informed than you are."

He pursed his thick lips as he considered that. "Maybe." He allowed, but his eyes were shrewd. "Is Charlie as well informed?" Shoot, he had found the weak chink in my armor.

"Charlie likes the Cullen's and Lilly a lot," I hedged. He clearly understood my evasion. His expression was unhappy, but unsurprised.

"It's not my business," he said. "But it may be Charlie's."

"Though it would be my business, again, whether or not I think that's Charlie's business, right?"

I wondered if he even understood my confused question as I struggled not to say anything compromising. But he seemed to. He thought about it while the rain picked up against the roof, the only sound breaking the silence.

"Yes," he finally surrendered. "I guess that's your business, too."

I sighed with relief. "Thanks, Billy."

"Just think about what you're doing, Bella." He urged.

"Okay," I agreed quickly.

He frowned. "What I meant to say was, don't do what you're doing."

I looked into his eyes, filled with nothing but concern for me, and there was nothing I could say.

Just then, the front door banged open loudly, and I jumped at the sound.

"There's no picture anywhere in that car!" Jacob complaining voice reached us before he did. The shoulders of his shirt were stained with the rain, his hair dripping when he rounded the corner.

"Hmm," Billy grunted, suddenly detached, spinning his chair around to face his son. "I guess I left it at home."

Jacob rolled his eyes dramatically. "Great."

"Well, Bella, tell Charlie: - Billy paused before continuing – "that we stopped by, I mean."

"I will," I muttered.

"Are we leaving already?" Jacob asked surprised.

"Charlie's gonna be out late," Billy explained as he rolled himself past Jacob.

"Oh." Jake looked disappointed. "Well, I guess I'll see you later, then, Bella."

"Sure," I agreed.

"Take care," Billy warned me. I remained silent, not answering him.

Jacob helped his father out of the door. I waved briefly, glancing swiftly towards my now empty truck, and then shut the door before they were gone.

**(Edward's POV)**

"What's all this?" Bella asked when I opened the door to Emmett's jeep after meeting her father formally for the first time.

"It's an off-roading harness." I explained, helping her up into the seat and made it around to the driver's side of the jeep at human pace.

"Uh-oh." She mumbled to herself as she tried to find the right places for all the buckles to fit, but it wasn't going too quickly. I sighed again and reached over to help her. My hands would linger on her neck, brushing along her collarbones as she gave up trying to help me and I could feel her breathing hitch and her heartbeat pick up. Personally, I loved that I had that effect on her.

I turned they key and the engine roared to life and we pulled away from the house.

"This is a…um…big Jeep you have." She observed looking around.

"It's Emmett's. I didn't think you'd want to run the whole way." I answered casually.

"Where do you keep this thing?"

"We remodeled on of the outbuildings into a garage."

"Aren't you going to put on your seat belt?"

I threw her a disbelieving look as I watched as what I had said earlier began to sink in.

"Run the whole way? As in, we're still going to run part of the way?" Her voice edged up a few octaves.

I grinned tightly. "You're not going to run."

"I'm going to be sick." She groaned.

"Keep your eyes closed, you'll be fine." I said dismissing her previous statement.

She bit her lip as she fought the panic. I leaned over to kiss the top of her head, and then groaned. She looked up at me puzzled.

"You smell so good in the rain," I explained.

"In a good way or in a bad way?" She asked cautiously.

I sighed. "Both, always both."

I easily found my way in the gloom and downpour, and found the side road that was less of a road and more of a mountain path that Emmett and Jasper created when we first came here from Alaska two years ago. Conversation was impossible once we turned on to the road, because she was bouncing up and down on the seat like a jackhammer. I, however, was enjoying the ride, smiling the whole way as I watched her bounce around, trying to contain my laughter.

And then we came to the end of the road; the trees formed green walls on three sides of the Jeep. The rain was a mere drizzle, slowing every second, the sky brighter through the clouds.

"Sorry, Bella, we have to go on foot from here." I explained, trying to seem apologetic, but was honestly anxious to feel her warm body against mine as I ran us there.

"You know what? I'll just wait here." She laughed nervously.

"What happened to all your courage? You were extraordinary this morning." I challenged her.

"I haven't forgotten the last time yet." She murmured.

I opened my door and flitted around to her side of the car in a blur and started to unbuckle her.

"I'll get those, you go on ahead," she protested.

"Hmmm…" I mused as I quickly finished the buckles. "It seems I'm going to have to tamper with your memory."

Before she could react, I pulled her from the Jeep and set her feet on the ground. It was barely misting now; Alice was right, as always.

"Tamper with my memory?" she asked nervously.

"Something like that." I replied, watching her intently, carefully, trying to contain my humor. I placed my hands against the Jeep on either side of her head and leaned forward, forcing her to press her back against the door. I leaned in even closer, my face stopping only inches from hers, making sure that she had no room to escape.

"Now," I breathed, and ran my rose up and down her neck, stopping just shy of her ear, "what exactly are you worrying about?"

"Well, um, hitting a tree – " she gulped " – and dying. And then getting sick."

I fought back a smile at her ridiculous explanation, knowing for a fact that I would not be hitting any trees and definitely not letting her die. Then, I bent my head down and touched my cold lips softly to the hollow at the base of her throat. "Are you still worried now?" I murmured against her skin.

"Yes." She squeaked. "About hitting trees and getting sick."

My nose drew another line up the skin of her throat to the point of her chin, making sure my breath was tickling her skin. "And now?" I whispered against her jaw.

"Trees," she gasped, "motion sickness."

I knew at this point that I almost got her where I wanted her and lifted my face to kiss her eyelids. "Bella, you don't really think I would hit a tree, do you?"

"No, but I might." There was no confidence in her voice and I knew that I had just won an easy victory.

I kissed slowly down her cheek, stopping just at the corner of her mouth. "Would I let a tree hurt you?" My lips were barely brushing against her trembling lower lip, even though I was aching to kiss her.

"No," She breathed.

"You see," I said, my lips moving against hers triumphantly. "There's nothing to be afraid of, is there?"

"No," She sighed, giving up.

I took her face in my hands almost roughly in human standards, and kissed her in earnest, my unyielding lips moving against hers. Her arms reached up to twin tightly around my neck, and she was suddenly welded to my stone figure. She sighed, and her lips parted.

I staggered back, breaking her grip effortlessly. The second she opened her mouth and her breath hit my nose, my blood lust flared and put her at risk. I can't ever lose control with her. I couldn't live with myself knowing that I was the cause of her demise. I can't live in a world that she is not in; I refuse.

"Damn it, Bella!" I broke off, gasping. "You'll be the death of me, I swear you will!"

She leaned over, bracing her hands against her knees for support.

"You're indestructible," She mumbled, trying to catch her breath.

"I might have believed that before I met you. Now, let's get out of here before I do something really stupid," I growled.

I threw her across my back as I had before, making sure I used extra effort to be as gentle as I could with her in the state I am in. She locked her legs around my waist and secured her arms in a choke hold around my neck.

"Don't forget to close your eyes," I warned severely.

I felt her tuck her face into my shoulder blade, under her own arm, giving her a second to shut her eyes before I took off in a sprint towards the field where my family was waiting for us.

**(Lilly's POV)**

We were all at the field, waiting on Edward and Bella as I practiced throwing the ball back and forth with Rose while Emmett and Jasper ran around the field making the bases. Alice practiced pitching with Esme as her catcher, as Carlisle emptied the bag of extra reinforced bats and balls.

"What's taking them so long?" Rose asked as Emmett and Jasper walked over to us.

"She's human, Rose, what do you expect?" Emmett answered as if it was obvious.

"I still don't know why Alice invited her. It's not like she can play with us." She complained.

"But she can watch, and I think that she would really enjoy herself." I reasoned, sticking up for my best friends. "Not to mention, Edward really loves her and he wants to include her in the family activities. Not to mention, she is my best friend."

"Hey!" Alice pouted from across the field, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Alice, you and Rose are my sisters. There is a difference." I explained and the both smiled happily as we continued to practice for the game.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, we heard what sounded like a loud 'Umph,' followed by a round for roaring laughter. We stopped what we were doing and all looked at each other confused, before Emmett's expression turned in to a grin.

"What in the hell was that?" He chuckled.

"Emmett, language!" Esme scolded him, trying to keep her own smile off of her face.

"I think that was Edward and Bella." Jasper concluded, tossing a baseball up in the air and catching it. "I can feel two sets of emotions. One is full of hilarity and amusement, while the other is full of irritation and anger."

None of us said anything after that and Esme, Emmett, and Rosalie went to sit on a bare outcropping of rock, while Jasper wrapped his arms around me and turned me to face him before he leaned in to kiss me. We pulled apart with love struck smile on each of our faces.

Jasper took me by my hand and led me over to the large log that was near the makeshift baseball diamond and took a seat. I was then pulled to sit in-between his legs in the grass. Finally, a few minutes later, Edward and Bella walked out of the tree line.

She looked around the large field in awe as she took in all of us and her surroundings in. When they were further in to the field, the three on the rocks rose. Esme started towards them and Emmett followed after a long look at Rosalie's back; Rosalie had risen gracefully and strode off towards the field without a second glance in their direction.

I looked at Jasper and after his nod, I got up and flitted over to the small group to greet them.

"Was that you we heard, Edward?" Esme asked as she approached them.

"It sounded like a bear choking," Emmett clarified.

Bella smiled hesitantly at Esme. "That was him."

"Bella was being unintentionally funny," Edward explained.

"Hey, Bella! I'm so glad you came!" I greeted her, pulling her in to a hug as Edward smiled affectionately at us.

"Yeah, I'm glad I came too! I'm really interested to see what makes vampire baseball so different from regular Major league baseball." She grinned as we linked our arms together and made our way over to the field.

Alice had left her position and was running, or dancing, towards us. She hurtled to a fluid stop at our feet. "It's time," she announced.

As soon as she spoke, a deep rumble of thunder shook the forest beyond us, and then crashed westward toward town.

"Eerie, isn't it?" Emmett said with easy familiarity, winking at Bella.

"Let's go." Alice reached for Emmett's hand and they darted toward the oversized field; she ran like a gazelle. He was nearly as graceful and just as fast, yet Emmett could never be compared to a gazelle.

"Are you ready for some ball?" Edward asked us, his eyes eager and bright.

"Go team!" Bella said, trying to sound enthusiastic.

We snickered and after mussing her hair and grabbing my elbow, we bounded off after the other two.

We split up into teams and flipped a coin to see who would be up to bat first. We were all excited, since they could never play often, and this was only my second time playing sports with them, aside from the time we played football with Peter and Char.

By the time Bella and Esme made it to us, we were all set and getting everything ready for us to begin.

"You don't play with them?" Bella asked her shyly.

"No, I prefer to referee – I like keeping them honest." She explained.

"She thinks we cheat." Emmett grinned.

"Oh, I know you do." Esme chuckled, shaking her head at him swinging his bat around before turning back to Bella. "You should hear the arguments they get into! Actually, I hope you don't, you would think they were raised by a pack of wolves."

"You sound like my mom," she laughed surprised.

Esme laughed, too. "Well, I do think of them as my children in most ways. Even Lilly, now that she pretty much lives with us. I never could get over my mothering instincts – did Edward tell you I had lost a child?"

"No," she murmured, stunned. I wrapped an arm around Esme's shoulders and gave Bella a sympathetic look as she took this all in.

"Yes, my first and only baby. He died just a few days after he was born, the poor tiny thing," she sighed. "It broke my heart – that's why I jumped off the cliff, you know," she added matter-of-factly.

"Edward just said you f-fell." Bella stammered.

"Always the gentleman," I mumbled and she smiled.

"Edward was the first of my new sons. I've always thought of him that way, even though he's older than I, in one way at least." She smiled at us warmly. "That's why I'm so happy he's found you, dear. The same with you and Jasper, Lilly." The endearment sounded very natural on her lips as she gave me a tight squeeze. "They've been alone for far too long; it's hurt me to see them alone."

"You don't mind, then?" Bella asked hesitantly, again. "That I'm…all wrong for him?"

"No." Esme was thoughtful while I looked at her incredulously. "You're what he wants. It will work out, somehow." She said, though her forehead creased with worry.

Another peal of thunder began.

Esme stopped then and I gave Bella a look that said 'we will talk about this later,' before I ran over to join my team. Edward was far out in left field, Carlisle stood between the first and second bases, and Alice held the ball, positioned on the spot that we deemed the pitcher's mound.

Emmett was swinging an aluminum bat as it whistled almost untraceably to human ears through the air as he stood on home plate and took his stance. Jasper stood several feel behind him, catching for the other team. Of course, none of us had gloves.

"All right," Esme called in a clear voice that we all heard. "Batter up."

Alice stood straight, deceptively motionless. Her style was stealth rather than an intimidating windup. She held the ball in both hands at her waist, and then, like the strike of a cobra, her right hand flicked out and the ball smacked into Jasper's hand.

"Was that a strike?" I heard Bella whisper to Esme.

"If they don't hit it, it's a strike." She told her.

Jasper hurled the ball back to Alice's waiting hand. She permitted herself a brief grin, and then her hand spun out again.

This time the bat made it around in time to smash into the speeding ball. The crack of impact was shattering, thunderous; it echoed off the mountains, making it the reason that we need the thunder.

The ball shot like a meteor above the field, flying deep into the surrounding forest.

"Home run," Bella murmured.

"Wait," I cautioned, listening intently, one hand raised. Emmett ran around the bases, making him look like a blur to human eyes, as Carlisle shadowed him as Edward flew into the forest after the ball.

"Out!" Esme cried in a clear voice. I watched as Bella stared in disbelief as Edward sprang from the fringe of the trees, ball in his upraised hand, his wide grin visible on his face.

"Emmett hits the hardest," Esme explained, "but Edward runs the fastest."

"Yeah, when the Major's not here." I mumbled, too quiet for anyone besides to hear. He turned his head and grinned at me, throwing a wink in my direction while I blew him a kiss.

Jasper had once confided in me that in all honesty, he was the fastest and strongest in the family. He explained how after his newborn year was over, instead of losing some of his strength and speed, he seemed to gain what he would lose. He has always kept it a secret from the Cullen's, because when he first arrived, they were afraid of him as it was because of his scars and didn't want to scare them even more. Not to mention, it would be just another talent that would attract the Volturi to them and if would be better if he just kept it between us.

The inning continued in our fast pace, as Bella watched us in amazement as she learned the other reason why we need a thunderstorm to play when Jasper, trying to avoid Edward's infallible fielding, hit a groundball toward Carlisle as I took his place catching. Carlisle ran into the ball, and then raced Jasper to first base. When they collided, the sound was like the crash of two massive boulders. I laughed as Bella jumped in concern, but then sighed in relief and awe as they got up unscathed, laughing.

"Safe," Esme called in a calm voice.

Our team was up by one – Rosalie managed to flit around the bases after tagging up on one of Emmett's long flies – when Edward caught the third out. He sprinted to Bella's side, sparkling with excitement.

"What do you think?" he asked.

"One thing's for sure, I'll never be able to sit through dull old Major League Baseball again."

"And you did so much of that before." I joked, laughing.

"I am a little disappointed." Bella teased.

"Why?" Edward asked puzzled.

"Well, it would be nice if I could find just one thing that either you or Lilly didn't do better than everyone else on the planet." He flashed her a crooked smile.

"Lilly and I are just good like that." He said bumping me with his shoulder.

"What about me?" Jasper asked in mock hurt as he came up behind me and wrapped his arms around me.

"Oh, I can name a few things that you do better than anyone else on the planet." I winked, sending a burst of lust in his direction and I watched as his eyes turned black before he bent down and kissed his mark.

I stifled a moan before pulling myself out of his embrace and pulling him out on to the field in to our positions to play the game.

"I'm up," I heard Edward tell Bella before heading for the plate and picking up a bat.

He played intelligently, as is his personality, keeping the ball low, out of the reach of Rosalie's always-ready hand in the outfield, gaining two bases like lightning before I could get the ball back in play. Carlisle knocked one so far out of the field that he and Edward both made it in. Alice slapped them dainty high fives as Emmett harassed them telling them that they had just gotten lucky.

The score constantly changed as the game continued, and we razzed each other like any street ballplayers as we took turns with the lead. Occasionally, Esme would call us to order. The thunder rumbled on, but we stayed dry, as Alice had predicted.

Carlisle was up to bat, Edward catching, when Alice suddenly gasped. Edward, watching her vision right along with her, snapped his head up to look at her. Their eyes met and something flowed between them in an instant. He was at Bella's side before we could ask Alice what was wrong.

"Alice?" I asked, my voice tense as Jasper came to stand in front of me, watching out for any danger or threat to me.

"I didn't see – I couldn't tell," she whispered.

We were gathered by this time.

"What is it, Alice?" Carlisle asked with the calm voice of authority.

"They were traveling much quicker than I thought. I can see I had the perspective wrong before," she murmured, speaking of the three nomads that she saw in her vision earlier this morning. Bella stood there with a confused, panicked expression, not knowing what was going on.

"What changed?" Jasper asked, leaning closer to me with an arm wrapped around my waist, keeping me behind him. I made sure that we were standing as close to Bella as I could get, wanting to help protect my human best friend from any possible danger that was on it's way.

"They heard us playing, and it changed their path," she said, contrite, as if she felt responsible for whatever had frightened her.

Eight pairs of quick eyes flashed to Bella's face and away.

"How soon?" Carlisle said, turning toward Edward.

A look of intense concentration crossed his face as he stretched his senses and his gift to reach the nomads.

"Less than five minutes. They're running – they want to play." He scowled.

"Can you make it?" Carlisle asked him, his eyes flicking toward Bella again.

"No, not carrying – "He cut short. "Besides, the last thing we need is for them to catch the scent and start hunting."

"How many?" Emmett asked Alice.

"Three," she answered tersely.

"Three!" he scoffed. "Let them come." The steel bands of muscle flexed along his massive arms.

For a split second that seemed much longer than it really was, Carlisle deliberated. Only Emmett seemed unperturbed; the rest of us stared at Carlisle's face with anxious eyes.

"Let's just continue the game," he finally decided. His voice was cool and level. "Alice said they were simply curious."

"What about Lilly?" Jasper asked urgently.

"What about me?" I asked, turning to look at him in surprise.

"They can't find out about you! I should get you out of here. You aren't a normal vampire and they will ask questions that we can't afford to answer to our world, yet. What if they run in to the Volturi and Aro sees you in their thoughts and comes after you. They fear the unknown, Lil!" Jasper rambled at vampire speed. Bella just looked at us confused. I'm sure it must have looked odd since she couldn't hear what Jasper and I were saying.

"No!" I shook my head. "I'm staying here to make sure that Bella stays safe. I'll stay away from them and close to you so that they can't sense the slight different in my scent and my human features. From a distance, the way I move and act, I look just like one of you."

"We don't have time for this!" He argued. "Please! I can't risk you."

"And I can't risk my best friend." I answered back.

"Dude, she can take care of herself and if things get too heated here, she can make them not remember her. Let her stay." Emmett said sticking up for me.

He sighed. "Fine. But keep your distance if things go bad, you better not hesitate to use your gift."

"Then it's settled." Carlisle nodded.

"Are they thirsty?" Esme asked Edward, again at vampire speed. He paused for a moment and then shook his head 'no.'

"You catch, Esme," Edward instructed. "I'll call it now." And he planted himself in front of Bella.

The rest of us returned to the field, warily sweeping the dark forest with our sharp eyes. Esme and I oriented ourselves around where Bella stood.

"Take your hair down," Edward said in a low, even voice.

She obediently slid the rubber band out of her hair and shook it out.

"The others are coming now." Bella said stating the obvious.

"Yes, stay very still, keep quiet, and don't move from my side, please." Edward instructed her, hiding the stress I knew he was feeling.

"You too, Lilly; stay by me." Jasper added.

Edward pulled Bella's long hair forward, around her face.

"That won't help," I said softly. "I could smell her across the field."

"I know," A hint of frustration colored his tone.

Carlisle stood at the plate and the rest of us joined the game halfheartedly.

"What did Esme ask you?" Bella whispered to Edward.

He hesitated for a second before he answered. "Whether they were thirsty," he muttered unwillingly.

The seconds ticked by; the game progressed with apathy now. No one dared to hit harder than a hunt, and Emmett, Rosalie, and Alice hovered in the infield. Now and again, I would notice Rosalie's eyes on Bella. They were expressionless, but something about the way she held her mouth made me fully aware that she was angry.

Edward paid no attention to the game at all, eyes and mind ranging the forest.

"I'm so sorry, Bella," he muttered fiercely. "It was stupid, irresponsible, to expose you like this. I'm so sorry."

I heard his breath stop, and his eyes zeroed in on right field. Jasper and Edward both took a half step in front of us, angling themselves between us and the nomads that were coming.

Carlisle, Emmett, and the rest of us turned in the same direction, hearing sounds of passage as they made their way through the forest towards us.

**A/N:**** Cliff Hanger! Sorry guys, but at least I gave you a nice long chapter in the mean time! I hope you enjoyed it! The confrontation with the Nomads is up next! It will be posted within the next few days…**

**Read and Review! If you have any questions or comments, post them in my reviews and I will answer them in my next Author's Note!**

**Check out my other stories!**

'Attempting to Covet'  
>'Dhampir'<br>'Far Fetched Realities'  
>'Mirror Image'<br>'Other Worldly Beauty'  
>'Perplexing Revelations'<br>'Pretexting'  
>'The Heart's Desire'<span>** NEW!  
><strong>'The Major'  
>'Twilight ReVAMPed'<span>

**If you enjoyed this story so far, check out some of my other stories on my FanFiction page! Also, I am still accepting Twilight stories that involve Jasper/any female leads or Bella/selected male leads if anyone is looking for a Beta Reader. I will make exceptions on the characters depending on the plot. PM me for details!  
><strong>_- Bella'Xo  
><em>**Xo BellaItalia oX**


	26. Chapter 23

**Disclaimer. ****All publicly recognizable characters, settings etc., are the property of their respective owners. The original characters, ideas and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended. I only do this for fun. –B**

**Chapter 23  
><strong>**(Lilly's POV)**

They emerged one by one from the forest edge, ranging a dozen meters apart. The first male into the clearing fell back immediately, allowing the other male to take the front, orienting himself around the tall, dark-haired man in a manner than clearly displayed who led the pack. The third was a woman whose hair was a startling shade of red. They closed ranks before they continued cautiously towards us, exhibiting the natural respect of a troop of predators as it encounters a larger, unfamiliar group of its own kind.

As they approached, I could see how different they were from myself and the Cullen's. Their walk was catlike, a gait that seemed constantly on the edge of shifting into a crouch. They dressed in the ordinary gear of backpackers: jeans and casual button-down shirts in heavy, weatherproof fabrics. The clothes were frayed, though, with ear, and they were barefoot. Both males had hair on the longer side, but the woman had brilliant orange hair that was filled with leaves and debris from the woods.

Their sharp eyes carefully took in the more polished, urbane stance of Carlisle, who, flanked by Emmett and Jasper, stepped guardedly forward to meet them. Without any seeming communication between them, they each straightened into a more casual, erect bearing.

The man in front was easily the most beautiful, his skin olive-toned beneath the typical pallor, his hair in glossy black locks. He was of a medium build, hard-muscled, of course, but nothing next to Emmett's brawn. He smiled an easy smile, exposing a flash of gleaming white teeth.

The woman was wilder, her eyes shifting restlessly between the men facing her, and the loose grouping around Bella, her chaotic hair quivering in the slight breeze. Her posture was distinctly feline. The second male hovered unobtrusively behind them, slighter than the leader, his light blond hair pulled in a short pony tail and regular features both nondescript. His eyes, though completely still, somehow seemed the most vigilant.

Their eyes were different from ours, too. Not the gold, or black of the Cullen's or my inhumanly bright hazel, but a deep burgundy color that were exactly like my biological father's; from what I could tell in the picture of him. But there was a difference from the friendly eyes of my father's and theirs. Their eyes were deeply disturbing a sinister.

The dark-haired man, still smiling, stepped toward Carlisle.

"We thought we heard a game," he said in a relaxed voice with the slightest of French accents. "I am Laurent, and this is Victoria and James." He gestured to the vampires beside him.

"I'm Carlisle. This is my family, Emmett and Jasper, Rosalie, Esme and Lilly, Edward, Alice and Bella." He pointed us out in groups, deliberately not calling attention to individuals.

"Do you have room for a few more players?" Laurent asked sociably.

Carlisle matched Laurent's friendly tone. "Actually, we were just finishing up. But we'd certainly be interested another time. Are you planning to stay in the area for long?"

"We're headed north, in fact, but we were curious to see who was in the neighborhood. We haven't run into any company in a long time."

"No, this region is usually empty except for us and the occasional visitor, like yourselves."

The tense atmosphere had slowly subsided into a casual conversation; I knew that Jasper was using his peculiar gift to control the situation.

"What's your hunting range?" Laurent casually inquired.

Carlisle ignored the assumption behind the inquiry. "The Olympic Range here, up and down the Coast Ranges on occasion. We keep a permanent residence nearby. There's another permanent settlement like ours up near Denali."

Laurent rocked back on his heels slightly. "Permanent? How do you manage that?" There was honest curiosity in his voice.

"Why don't you come back to our home with us and we can talk comfortably?" Carlisle invited. "It's a rather long story."

James and Victoria exchanged a surprised look at the mention of the word 'home,' but Laurent controlled his expression better.

"That sounds very interesting, and welcome." His smile was genial. "We've been on the hunt all the way down from Ontario, and we haven't had the chance to clean up in a while." His eyes moved appreciatively over Carlisle's refined appearance.

"Please don't take offense, but we'd appreciate it if you'd refrain from hunting in this immediate area. We have to stay inconspicuous, you understand." Carlisle explained.

"Of course," Laurent nodded. "We certainly won't encroach on your territory. We just ate outside of Seattle, anyway." He laughed.

I could see Victoria looking at me curiously from the corner of my eye as she cut off Laurent's laugh with the question that I had been dreading, regarding myself. "Out of all of you who have either gold or black eyes, why does she have green?" She must have thought that Bella's brown eyes were a fading shade of gold that were transitioning to black, if she had been looking at our eyes.

Edward subtlety nodded, confirming my thought as Jasper tensed as soon as the question was out of her mouth.

"Lilly is a…special case. She retained some human qualities after her transformation." Carlisle explained, thinking quickly on his feet.

"Really?" Laurent asked incredulously. "I've never heard of that happening before. Does she have all of our enhanced qualities?"

"Lilly, can you come here for a moment?" Jasper asked, not taking his eyes off of the trio.

I flit over to his side at vampire speed and stood slightly behind him as my instincts told me to. They looked at me in utter awe and amazement, except for James who looked at me with such intrigue and lust that I began to squirm under his gaze.

Noticing this, Jasper growled warningly in James's direction. "MINE!" He threatened him. It was obvious Victoria did not like the way that he studied me either, because she made a show of trying to hold on to his arm, only for him to brush her off, quickly.

"Lilly is my son, Jasper's mate. They are newly mated, so excuse his over-protectiveness." Carlisle clarified.

"No harm done," Laurent waved off. "We know what the call of mate's and the instincts that comes along with it."

"Yes, we do." Jasper snapped, wrapped an arm possessively around my waist.

"As for your earlier question, looking at her, you would think that she is an inhumanly beautiful human. She even has a heartbeat, even though it beats faster than a normal human's." Carlisle began, trying to change the subject.

"I was wondering what that thrumming was," Victoria mused, still eyeing me warily.

"Yes, that would be her heartbeat." Carlisle confirmed. "But other than those things, she is a completely normal vampire. She has venom instead of blood in her veins and the same extra strong senses, the speed, strength…everything."

I noticed that from his explanation, he was shying away from anything having to do with my gift. Regardless, I stayed ready to use it on them in a moment's notice if found out about it or if they began to second guess Carlisle's explanation about why I resemble a human with vampire abilities.

"Amazing…" Laurent gushed as he continued to study me in amazement.

Throughout the entire conversation, James stayed quiet as he watched me with the same mixture of lust and desire; desire for what, I wasn't sure. Jasper and Edward would have to clarify it at a later date.

Alice impatiently cleared her throat behind us, obviously wanting to get Bella and myself away from this group, gaining Carlisle's attention.

"Yes, well we would be happy to discuss things with our lifestyle and give you a chance to clean up, so if you follow us, we'll show you the way if you'd like to run with us? Jasper and Lilly, you can go with Edward, Bella and Alice to get the Jeep." He casually added.

"Of course, let's get going." Jasper agreed.

As we began to separate, thinking we were in the clear, three things seemed to happen simultaneously. Bella's hair ruffled with the light breeze, Edward stiffened, and the second male, James, suddenly whipped his head around, scrutinizing her, his nostrils flaring.

A swift rigidity feel on all of us as James lurched one step forward into a crouch.

Edward bared his teeth, crouching in defense, a feral snarl ripping from his throat as we all gathered around Bella our crouches of our own in a protective semi-circle. It was nothing like the playful sounds that usually came from the Cullen house and my first encounter in a threatening position against another of our kind. As soon as I was in protective mode, my vampire side completely took over and everything felt natural.

"What's this?" Laurent exclaimed in open surprise. Neither James nor Edward relaxed their aggressive poses. James feinted slightly to the side, and Edward shifted in response.

"She's with us." Carlisle's firm rebuff was directed toward James. Laurent seemed to catch Bella's scent less powerfully than James, but awareness now dawned on his face.

"You brought a snack?" he asked, his expression incredulous as he took an involuntary step forward.

Edward snarled even more ferociously, harshly, his lip curling high above his glistening, bared teeth.

Laurent stepped back again.

"I said she's with us," Carlisle corrected in a hard voice.

"But she's human," Laurent protested. "Really human." I knew he was thinking of me when he made the comparison, but the words were not at all aggressive, merely astounded.

"Yes." Emmett was very much in evidence at Carlisle's side, his eyes on James. James slowly straightened out of his crouch, but eyes never left Bella, his nostrils still wide. Edward stayed tensed like a lion in front of her.

When Laurent spoke, his tone was soothing – trying to defuse the sudden hostility. "It appears we have a lot to learn about each other."

"Indeed." Carlisle's voice was still cool.

"But we'd like to accept your invitation." His eyes flicked toward Bella and back to Carlisle. "And, of course, we will not harm the human girl. We won't hunt in your range, as I said."

James glanced in disbelief and aggravation at Laurent and exchanged another brief exchanged another brief look with Victoria, whose eyes still flickered edgily from face to face.

"Lilly, I am going to stay with Carlisle." Jasper said quietly so that only I could hear. "I want you to go with Edward, Alice, Bella, and Emmett is going to be with you in case you need him."

I looked to Emmett and he nodded towards me, knowing what Jasper must be talking to me about.

Carlisle measured Laurent's open expression a moment before he spoke. "We'll show you the way. Jasper, Rosalie, Esme?" he called. They gathered together, blocking Bella from view as they converged. Alice instantly flew to Bella's side as I stood protectively behind Emmett- after Jasper gave me a discrete motion with his eyes- with all of our eyes on James as we backed away towards the other three.

"Let's go Bella." Edward's voice was low and bleak.

"Yeah, come on, Lil." Emmett agreed.

I noticed that the whole time, Bella remained immobilized in place by absolute terror. Edward gripped her elbow and pulled sharply, breaking her trance as she kept her eyes on James's form, just as Emmett grabbed on to my own hand and lightly tugged me towards the direction that Edward and Bella had emerged from not an hour ago. Alice, Emmett and I followed behind Bella and Edward as we continued to hide Bella from view as we moved.

I turned back one more time to look at Jasper and saw that they were still talking to the Nomads. He must have felt my gaze because he turned his head to the side to look back at me and sent me his love through our mating bond.

One thing that I loved about having our mating completed was the fact that we could feel each other's emotions when we needed to, no matter how far apart we were. The constant flow of emotions was dulled and I didn't even notice it unless I concentrated on it, unless a particular strong emotion erupted and then it would grab my attention. If that wasn't the case, then we found that we could concentrate on a particular emotion and send it to the other.

When I asked the other mated pairs in the family, they said that it was because Jasper and I were true mates, which meant that our bond was stronger than the average mated pair. A true mate is very rare and there has only been one other known pair, and that we Marcus and Didyme of the Volturi. The rest of them were only mated pairs, which were less hard to find and much more common in the vampire world. Apparently, Edward and Bella were regular mates as well. So they didn't have the extra little quirks that Jasper and I seemed to have.

Bella stumbled in fear as we approached the tree line; I could hear that the others had not left yet. Edward's impatience was almost tangible as we moved at human speed to the forest edge. Once we were into the trees, Edward slung Bella over his back without breaking stride as we took off at vampire speed through the trees.

We reached the Jeep in an impossibly short time, and Edward barely slowed as he flung Bella in the back seat.

"Strap her in," he ordered Emmett as he slid in beside her and I sat on the other side, behind the passenger seat.

Alice was already in the front seat, and Edward was starting the engine. It roared to life and we swerved backward, spinning around to face the winding road, Edward growling out a string of profanities at vampire speed as we went.

Bella remained silent, but was obviously frightened, keeping silent as we all glared out the side windows. We hit the main road, and though our speed increased, everything was still as clear as day for us. It was then that I noticed that we were headed south, away from Forks.

It appears that Bella also had noticed this, because she suddenly broke the silence with the question that I'm sure at least the three of us in the back seat were curious to know the answer to.

"Where are we going?"

No one answered. No one even looked at her.

"Damnit, Edward! Where are you taking me?" She demanded, louder and a lot sterner this time.

"We have to get you and Lilly away from here – far away – now." His answer surprised me when he involved me in our escape as he didn't look back and kept his eyes on the road. The speedometer read a hundred and five miles an hour.

"Turn around! You have to take me home!" Bella shouted before I could ask any questions as she struggled with the harness, tearing at the straps. I decided to let them hash this out first, before I asked any questions involving myself.

"Emmett," Edward said grimly. And Emmett secured her hands in his steely grasp.

"No! Edward! No, you can't do this!"

"I have to, Bella, now please be quiet."

"I won't! You have to take me back – Charlie will call the FBI! They'll be all over your family – Carlisle and Esme! They'll have to leave, to hide forever!"

"Calm down, Bella." His voice was cold. "We've been there before."

"Not over me, you don't! You're not ruining everything over me!" I struggled violently, with total futility. "And what about Lilly's parents, huh? What will they think?"

"Her parents are out of town and won't be back until next week. We will figure it out then." Edward resolved.

Alice spoke for the first time. "Edward, pull over."

He flashed her a hard look, and then sped up.

"Edward, let's just talk this through."

"You don't understand," he roared in frustration. I'd never heard his voice so loud; it was deafening in the confines of the jeep with my extra strong hearing. "He's a tracker, Alice, did you see that? He's a tracker!"

I felt Emmett stiffen next to me, and I wondered at his reaction to the word. When it came to all of this vampire lingo, I was just as clueless as Bella for the most part. It meant something more to the three of them than it did to me and Bella; I wanted to understand, but there was no opening for me to ask.

"A tracker is a vampire who is gifted in tracking other vampires or humans." Emmett mumbled at vampire speed for my benefit, obviously sensing that I was curious by the look on my face. "It's another gift like yours or Edwards."

I nodded in understanding as the fighting in the car continued.

"Pull over, Edward." Alice's tone was reasonable, but there was a ring of authority in it I'd never heard from my chipper sister before.

The speedometer inched passed one-twenty.

"Do it, Edward."

"Listen to me, Alice. I saw his mind. Tracking is his passion, his obsession – and he wants her and Lilly. Not for the same reason, of course, but her wants them – specifically. He begins the hunt tonight."

Alice continued to try to persuade him as they argued.

"He doesn't know where –"

He interrupted her.

"How long do you think it will take him to cross their scents in town? His plan was already set before the words were out of Laurent's mouth."

Bella gasped, knowing where the both of our scents would lead as I felt my eyes widen. I thanked the lord that my parents have been out of town and will continue to be for the next week.

"Charlie!" Bella shouted. "You can't leave him there! You can't leave him!" She thrashed against the harness.

"She's right," Alice said, not doing anything for our nerves, but obviously did something for Edward. The car slowed slightly and I could almost feel his indecision in the air.

"Let's just look at our options for a minute." Alice continued to coax.

The car slowed again, more noticeably, and then suddenly we screeched to a stop on the shoulder of the highway. Bella flew against the harness as I locked my body in place, holding on the grip on the door.

"There are no options," Edward hissed.

"I'm not leaving Charlie!" Bella yelled. He ignored her completely.

"We have to take her back," Emmett added his input.

"No." Edward was absolute.

"He's no match for us, Edward. He won't be able to touch either of them."

"He'll wait."

Emmett smiled. "I can wait, too."

"You didn't see – you don't understand. Once he commits to a hunt, he's unshakable. We'd have to kill him."

Emmett didn't seem upset by the idea. "That's an option."

"And the female. She's with him. If it turns into a fight, the leader will go with them, too."

"There are enough of us." I agreed with Emmett, knowing that I wasn't one to run and neither was Lilith.

"No." He shook his head.

"And what happens when you don't take Lilly back to Jasper tonight? He will come after you and rip you a new one, Edward!" Alice argued again.

"I'll deal with it when the time comes. At least Bella will be safe by then."

"And Rosalie?"

"I'm not afraid of her."

"There's another option," Alice said quietly.

Edward turned on her in fury, his voice a blistering snarl. "There – is – no – other – option!"

Bella, Emmett and I all stared at him in shock, but Alice seemed unsurprised. The silence lasted for a long minute as Edward and Alice stared each other down.

Bella broke it. "Does anyone want to hear my plan?"

"No," Edward growled. Alice glared at him, finally provoked.

"Listen," Bella pleaded. "You take me back."

"No," he interrupted.

She glared at him and continued. "You take me back. I tell my dad I want to go home to Phoenix. I pack my bags. We wait till this tracker is watching, and then we run. He'll follow us and leave Charlie alone. Charlie won't call the FBI on your family. Then you can take me any damned place you want."

We stared at her stunned.

"It's not a bad idea. It could work." Emmett agreed, clearly surprised by her logic.

"It might work – and we simply can't leave her father unprotected. You know that," Alice said.

Everyone looked at Edward.

"It's too dangerous – I don't want him within a hundred miles of her."

Emmett was supremely confident. "Edward, he's not getting through us."

"You just don't get it! He is after Bella, because he wants to kill her and drain her because of his game that he plays. My reactions on the field set him off. But even before he noticed Bella, he was intrigued with Lilly. He wants her as a possession! He is drawn to her as everyone else is and he wants her with him as a sex slave and whatever else he can use her for! Do you really want to risk it? That's my best friend and my mate that we are risking!"

Alice interrupted before Emmett could retort. "I don't see him attacking. He'll try to wait for us to leave them alone."

"It won't take long for him to realize that's not going to happen and then he will go after Lilly."

"No, he won't go after Lilly until he is finished with Bella, because Lilly will be a tougher conquest. Even if he did, he has no idea about her gift and she would easily be able to take care of him."

"I demand that you take me home." Bella said, trying to sound firm. Edward pressed his fingers to his temples and squeezed his eyes shut.

"Please," She said in a much smaller voice.

He didn't look up. When he spoke, his voice sounded worn.

"You're leaving tonight, whether the tracker sees or not. You tell Charlie that you can't stand another minute in Forks. Tell him whatever story works. Pack the first things your hands touch, and then get in your truck. I don't care what he says to you. You have fifteen minutes. Do you hear me? Fifteen minutes from the time you cross the doorstep."

The Jeep rumbled to life, and he spun us around, the tires squealing. The needle on the speedometer started to race up the dial.

"Emmett?" Bella asked, looking pointedly at her hands.

"Oh, sorry." He said before letting her loose.

A few minutes passed in silence, other than the roar of the engine. Then Edward spoke again.

"This is how it's going to happen. When we get to the house, if the tracker is not there, I will walk her to the door. Then she has fifteen minutes." He glared at her in the rearview mirror. "Emmett, you take the outside of the house with Lilly. Alice, you get the truck. I'll be inside as long as she is. After she's out, you three can take the Jeep home and tell Carlisle."

"No way," Emmett broke in. "I'm with you."

"Think it through, Emmett. I don't know how long I'll be gone."

"Until we know how far this is going to go, I'm with you."

Edward sighed. "If the tracker is there," he continued grimly, "we keep driving."

"We're going to make it there before him," Alice said confidently.

Edward seemed to accept that.

Whatever his problem with Alice was, he didn't doubt her now.

"What are we going to do with the Jeep?" I asked.

His voice had a hard edge. "You and Alice are driving it home."

"No, we're not," Alice said calmly.

The unintelligible stream of profanities started again.

"We can't all fit in my truck," Bella whispered.

Edward didn't appear to hear her.

"I think you should let me go alone," Bella said even more quietly.

He heard that.

"Bella, please just do this my way, just this once," he said between clenched teeth.

"Listen, Charlie's not an imbecile." She protested. "If you're not in town tomorrow, he's going to get suspicious."

"That's irrelevant. We'll make sure he's safe, and that's all that matters."

"Then what about this tracker? He saw the way you acted tonight. He's going to think you're with me, wherever you are."

Emmett looked at her in surprise again and nodded his head in agreement. "Edward, listen to her," he urged calmly. "I think she's right."

"Yes, she is," Alice agreed.

"I can't do that." Edward's voice was icy.

"Emmett should stay, too," She continued. "He definitely got an eyeful of Emmett."

"What?" Emmett turned on her.

"You'll get a better crack at him if you stay," I agreed.

Edward stared at me incredulously. "You think I should let her go alone?"

"Of course not," I said. "Jasper and I will take her."

"I can't do that," Edward repeated, but this time there was a trace of defeat in his voice. The logic was working on him.

"Yes you can." Alice agreed. "I will be going as well so I will know if we have to flee or move for whatever reason."

Bella then tried to be persuasive. "Hang out here for a week – " Bella saw his face in the mirror and amended "- a few days. Let Charlie see that you haven't kidnapped me, and lead this James on a wild-goose chase. Make sure that he's completely off my trail. Then come and meet me. Take a roundabout, of course, and then Jasper and Lilly can do what they need to do to keep her safe and Alice can go home or do what she needs to do."

We could clearly see the wheels turning in his head as he considered it.

"Meet you where?"

"Phoenix, of course."

"No. He'll hear that's where you're going."

"And you'll make it look like that's a ruse, obviously. He'll know that we'll know that he's listening. He'll never believe we're actually going where I say I am going." I explained logically.

"She's diabolical," Emmett chuckled.

"She's right." Bella agreed.

"And if that doesn't work?" Edward pressed.

"There are several million people in Phoenix," she informed him.

"It's not that hard to find a phone book."

"I won't go home."

"Oh?" he inquired, a dangerous note in his voice.

"I'm quite old enough to get my own place."

"Edward, we'll be with her," Alice reminded him.

"Yeah," I agreed.

"What are you going to do in Phoenix?" He asked us scathingly.

"Stay indoors." Alice shrugged.

"I kind of like it." Emmett was thinking about cornering James, no doubt.

"Shut up, Emmett." He growled.

"Look, if we try to take him down while she's still around, there's a much better chance that someone will get hurt – she'll get hurt, or you, or Lilly while trying to protect her. Or you could get either of them killed and Jasper will rip your head off and burn it if she is and you know it! Now, if we get him alone…" He trailed off with a slow smile.

The Jeep was crawling slowly along now as we drove into town. Despite her brave talk, I could see that she was scared about the possibilities of what could happen; not only to herself, but to Charlie. In fact, I had similar thoughts about myself and my parents, despite the fact that they were still in Vancouver. I could see the hairs on her arms standing up, so I reach around Emmett and gently squeezed her shoulder. She turned her head to look at me and gave me a grateful smile.

"Bella," Edward's voice was very soft. Alice, Emmett and I looked out our windows. "If you let anything happen to yourself – anything at all – I'm holding you personally responsible. Do you understand that?"

"Yes," I gulped.

He turned to Alice and I, looking back and forth between us.

"Can Jasper handle this? I mean, I know he took up your diet, Lilly, but I know that he still has trouble without you around to help him when he begins to feel overwhelmed."

"Give him some credit, Edward. He's been doing very, very well, all things considered."

"Can you handle this?" he asked Alice.

And graceful little Alice pulled back her lips in a horrific grimace and let loose with a guttural snarl that had Bella cowering against the seat in terror.

Edward smiled at her. "But keep your opinions to yourself," he muttered suddenly.

My phone started vibrating just as we began to near our street and I looked down seeing that it was Jasper. I hit the ignore button, since I knew that I didn't have time to talk to him. Not a second later, Emmett's phone began ringing and he looked at it as he was about to answer it.

"Don't you dare, Emmett!" Edward snapped before he had the chance to pick it up.

"Alright, fine!" He shrugged.

It was then that Alice's phone began to buzz and Edward's head snapped in her direction as we pulled up.

"He's not going to stop calling until one of us answers and if we don't he will end up coming here." Alice reasoned. "I'm going to be in the car anyway, I'll answer and tell him that you will call him when you can, Lilly, and if not, you will see him when we get to the house. I will also let him know that he needs to pack a bag for the both of you."

"Ok, thank you, Alice." I said gratefully as we turned on our street.

"Hello, Jasper," Alice chimed picking up the phone.

"_Where the hell are you guys and why the fuck didn't anybody answer their phones?"_ Jasper growled into the phone.

"Well, we are at Bella's and in a situation where they couldn't answer their phones."

"_What situation? Is everything okay?"_

"We beat the tracker to Bella's and she has to go in a tell Charlie that she is leaving. We need to be on the lookout for James while Edward gets Bella out."

"_Oh, well they left here not five minutes ago. I doubt he will find her, now."_

"That's the thing, Jasper. James is a tracker."

"_What? What else aren't you telling me?"_

"He's after Lilly, too. He wants her as a possession because he is drawn to her."

I heard Jasper's loud roar through the phone as Alice had to hold the phone away from her ear.

"_Have her call me when you leave Bella's."_ The Major's voice demanded through the phone. _"Oh, and Alice? If anything happens to her on your watch, you, Edward and Emmett will pay dearly."_

After his threat, there was nothing said by anyone as he hung up.

**A/N: ****So what did everyone think of the confrontation with the Nomads? I hope that everyone likes where I am taking this story! What do you think will happen next with James?**

**Read and Review! If you have any questions or comments, post them in my reviews and I will answer them in my next Author's Note!**

**Check out my other stories!**

'Attempting to Covet'  
>'Dhampir'<br>'Far Fetched Realities'  
>'Mirror Image'<br>'Other Worldly Beauty'  
>'Perplexing Revelations'<br>'Pretexting'  
>'The Heart's Desire'<span>** NEW!  
><strong>'The Major'  
>'Twilight ReVAMPed'<span>

**If you enjoyed this story so far, check out some of my other stories on my FanFiction page! Also, I am still accepting Twilight stories that involve Jasper/any female leads or Bella/selected male leads if anyone is looking for a Beta Reader. I will make exceptions on the characters depending on the plot. PM me for details!  
><strong>_- Bella'Xo  
><em>**Xo BellaItalia oX**


	27. Chapter 24

**Disclaimer. ****All publicly recognizable characters, settings etc., are the property of their respective owners. The original characters, ideas and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended. I only do this for fun. –B**

**Chapter 24  
><strong>**(Bella's POV)**

Charlie was waiting up for me. All the house lights were on. My mind was blank as I tried to think of a way to make him let me go. Could I get Lilly to use her gift? No, that wouldn't be fair. Ugh, this wasn't going to be pleasant.

Edward pulled up slowly, staying well back from my truck. All four of them were acutely alert, ramrod straight in their seats, listening to every sound of the wood, looking through every shadow, catching every scent, searching for something out of place. The engine cut off, and I sat, motionless, as they continued to listen.

"He's not here," Edward said tensely.

"Let's go," Emmett reached over to help me get out of the harness. "Lilly, make sure you stay with me. Jasper would kill me if you got hurt because I wasn't there to protect you when I promised I would be."

"Okay," she quietly replied.

"Don't worry, Bella," he said in a low, but cheerful voice as he turned his attention back to me, "we'll take care of things here quickly."

I felt moisture filling up my eyes as I looked at Emmett. I barely knew him, and yet, somehow, not knowing when I would see him again after tonight was anguishing. I knew this was just a faint taste of the goodbyes I would have to survive within the next hour, and the thought made the tears begin to spill.

"Alice, Lilly, Emmett." Edward's voice was a command. They slithered soundlessly into the darkness, instantly disappearing. Edward opened my door and took my hand, then drew me into the protecting enclosure of his arms.

He walked me swiftly toward the house eyes always roving through the night.

"Fifteen minutes," he warned under his breath.

"I can do this." I sniffled. My tears had given me an inspiration.

I stopped on the porch and took hold of his face in my hands. I looked fiercely into his eyes.

"I love you," I said in a low, intense voice. "I will always love you, no matter what happens now."

"Nothing is going to happen to you, Bella," he said just a fiercely.

"Just follow the plan, okay? Keep Charlie safe for me. He's not going to like me very much after this, and I want to have the chance to apologize later."

"Get inside, Bella. We have to hurry." His voice was urgent.

"One more thing," I whispered passionately. "Don't listen to another word I say tonight!" He was leaning in, and so all I had to do was stretch up on my toes to kiss his surprised, frozen lips with as much force as I was capable of. Then I turned and kicked the door open.

"Go away, Edward!" I yelled at him, running inside and slamming the door shut in his still-shocked face.

"Bella?" Charlie had been hovering in the living room, and he was already on his feet.

"Leave me alone!" I screamed at him through my tears, which were flowing relentlessly now. I ran up the stairs to my room, throwing the door shut and locking it. I ran to my bed, flinging myself on the floor to retrieve my duffel bag. I reached swiftly between the mattress and box spring to grab the knotted old sock that contained my secret cash hoard.

Charlie was pounding on my door.

"Bella, are you okay? What's going on?" His voice was frightened.

"I'm going borne," I shouted, my voice breaking in the perfect spot.

**(Lilly's POV)**

I stood next to Emmett in the shadows by the tree line in silence.

A twig snapped causing us to whip around and brought our attention to the woods.

"Ahh…home sweet home." James chuckled sinisterly as he appeared about fifteen feet away from Emmett and I.

"What do you want?" I growled to him.

"I think you all know exactly what I want and why I'm here." He smirked.

"Good luck trying to get past all of us." Emmett snarled.

"Oh, that won't be a problem." He answered.

Edward appeared next to us before either of us could say anything else.

"You stay away from her!" Edward snarled.

"You know, you are all really making this way too easy." James mocked.

Edward didn't say anything in return as he stayed in his crouch, reading everything that appears in James's thoughts.

"I mean what's the point?" He went on. "She's nothing but a measly little human. Why are you all so admit on protecting her, huh? They are nothing but food for us; they sustain us."

Still…none of us said anything as we just watched him.

"It doesn't matter; you don't have to say anything." James smirked. "I got what I wanted."

He began backing up, but then stopped and looked straight in to my eyes.

"_Je serai de retour__pour vous et__vous serez à moi__. __Je peux__vous promettre ceci__." _**(I will be back for you and you will be mine. I can promise you this.) **Was all he said before he disappeared into the darkness.

**(Bella's POV)**

"Did he hurt you?" His tone edged toward anger.

"No!" I shrieked a few octaves higher. I turned to my dresser, and Edward was already there, silently yanking out armfuls of random clothes, which he proceeded to throw at me.

"Did he break up with you?" Charlie was perplexed.

"No!" I yelled, slightly more breathless as I shoved everything in to the bag. Edward threw another drawer's contents at me.

The bag was pretty much full now.

"What happened, Bella?" Charlie shouted through the door, pounding again.

"I broke up with him!" I shouted back, jerking on the zipper of my bag. Edward's capable hands pushed mine away and zipped it smoothly. He put the strap carefully over my arm.

"I'll be in the truck – go!" he whispered, and pushed me toward the door. He vanished out the window.

I unlocked the door and pushed past Charlie roughly, struggling with my heavy bag as I ran down the stairs.

"What happened?" he yelled. He was right behind me. "I thought you liked him."

He caught my elbow in the kitchen. Though he was still bewildered, his grip was firm.

He spun me around to look at him, and I could see in his face that he had no intention of letting me leave. I could think of only one way to escape, and it involved hurting him so much that I hated myself for even considering it. But I had no time, and I had to keep him safe.

I glared up at my father, fresh tears in my eyes for what I was about to do.

"I do like him – that's the problem. I can't do this anymore I can't put down any more roots here! I don't want to end up trapped in this stupid, boring town like Mom! I'm not going to make the same dumb mistake she did. I hate it - I can't stay here another minute!"

His hand dropped from my arm like I'd electrocuted him. I turned away from his shocked, wounded face and headed for the door.

"Bella, you can't leave now. It's nighttime," he whispered behind me.

I didn't turn around. "I'll sleep in the truck if I get tired."

"Just wait another week," he pled, still shell-shocked. "Renee will be back by then."

This completely derailed me.

"What?"

Charlie continued eagerly, almost babbling with relief as I hesitated. "She called while you were out. Things aren't going so well in Florida, and if Phil doesn't get signed by the end of the week, they're going back to Arizona. The assistant coach of the Sidewinders said that they might have a spot for another shortstop."

I shook my head, trying to reassemble my now-confused thoughts. Every passing second put Charlie in more danger.

"I have a key," I muttered, turning the knob. He was too close, one hand extended toward me, his face dazed. I couldn't lose any more time arguing with him. I was going to have to hurt him further.

"Just let me go, Charlie." I repeated my mother's last words as she'd walked out this same door so many years ago. I said them as angrily as I could manage, and I threw the door open. "It didn't work out, okay? I really, really hate Forks!"

My cruel words did their job – Charlie stayed there frozen on the doorstep, stunned, while I ran into the night. I was hideously frightened of the empty yard. I ran wildly for the truck, visualizing a dark shadow behind me. I threw my bag in the bed and wrenched the door open. The key was waiting in the ignition.

"I'll call you tomorrow!" I yelled wishing more than anything that I could explain everything to him right then, knowing I would never be able to.

I gunned the engine and peeled out.

Edward reached for my hand.

"Pull over," he said as the house, and Charlie, disappeared behind us.

"I can drive," I said through the tears pouring down my cheeks. His long hands unexpectedly gripped my waist, and his foot pushed mine off the gas pedal. He pulled me across his lap, wrenching my hands free of the wheel, and suddenly he was in the driver's seat. The truck didn't swerve an inch.

"You wouldn't be able to find the house," he explained.

Lights flared suddenly behind us. I stared out the back window, eyes wide with horror.

"It's just Alice and Lilly," he reassured me. He took my hand again.

My mind was filled with the image of Charlie in the doorway. "The tracker?"

"He heard the end of your performance and then he threatened Lilly. " Edward said grimly.

"He threatened Lilly?" I asked incredulously.

"Yes," he growled our between clenched teeth. "He threatened her in French. How he knew that she even knew French is a mystery."

I shivered at the thought of that before I thought about my dad again.

"Charlie?" I asked in dread.

"The tracker followed us. He's running behind us now."

My body went cold.

"Can we outrun him?"

"No." But he sped up as he spoke. The truck's engine whined in protest. My plan suddenly didn't feel so brilliant anymore.

I was staring back at Alice's headlights when the truck shuddered and a dark shadow sprung up outside the window.

My bloodcurdling scream lasted a fraction of a second before Edward's hand clamped down on my mouth.

"It's Emmett!"

He released my mouth, and wound his arm around my waist.

"It's okay, Bella," he promised. "You're going to be safe."

We raced through the quiet town toward the north highway.

"I didn't realize you were still so bored with small-town life," he said conversationally, and I knew he was trying to distract me. "It seemed like you were adjusting fairly well – especially recently. Maybe I was just flattering myself that I was making life more interesting for you."

"I wasn't being nice," I confessed, ignoring his attempt at diversion, looking down at my knees. "That was the same thing my mom said when she life him. You could say I was hitting below the belt."

"Don't worry. He'll forgive you." He smiled a little, though it didn't touch his eyes.

I stared at him desperately, and he saw the naked panic in my eyes.

"Bella, it's going to be all right."

"But it won't be all right when I'm not with you." I whispered.

"We'll be together again in a few days," he said, tightening his arm around me. "Don't forget that this was your idea."

"It was the best idea – of course it was mine."

His answering smile was bleak and disappeared immediately.

"Why did this happen?" I asked, my voice catching. "Why me?"

He stared blackly at the road ahead. "It's my fault – I was a fool to expose you like that." The rage in his voice was directed internally.

"That's not what I meant," I insisted. "I was there, big deal. It didn't bother the other two. Why did this James decide to kill me? There's people all over the place, why me?"

He hesitated, thinking before he answered.

"I got a good look at his mind tonight," he began in a low voice. "I'm not sure if there's anything I could have done to avoid this, once he saw you. It is partially your fault. Lilly is the other reason." His voice was wry. "If she didn't draw people or my kind to her so strongly or if you didn't smell so appallingly luscious, he might not have bothered. But when I defended you…well, that made it a lot worse. He's not used to being thwarted, no matter how insignificant the object. He thinks of himself as a hunter and nothing else. His existence is consumed with tracking, and a challenge is all he asks of life.

"Suddenly, we've presented him with a beautiful challenge – a large clan of strong fighters all bent on protecting the one vulnerable element. You wouldn't believe how euphoric he is now. It is his favorite game, and we've just made it his most exciting game ever. He considers Lilly as his reward for getting you. He plans to share you with her as some symbolic meaning or something or other." His tone was full of disgust.

He paused for a moment.

"But if I had stood by, he would have killed you right then and then came back for Lilly later." He said with hopeless frustration.

"I thought…I didn't smell the same to the others…as I do to you," I said hesitantly.

"You don't. But that doesn't mean that you aren't still at temptation to every one of them. You do spell appalling sweet. If you had appealed to the tracker – or any of them – the same way you appeal to me, it would have meant a fight right there."

I shuttered.

"I don't think I have any choice but to kill him now," he muttered. "Carlisle won't like it."

I could hear the tires cross the bridge, though I couldn't see the river in the dark. I knew we were getting close. I had to ask him now.

"How can you kill a vampire?"

He glanced at me with unreadable eyes and his voice was suddenly harsh. "The only way to be sure is to hear him to shreds, and then burn the pieces."

"And the other two will fight with him?"

"The woman will. I'm not sure about Laurent. They don't have a very strong bond – he's only with them for convenience. He was embarrassed by James in the meadow…"

"But James and the woman – they'll try to kill you?" I asked, my voice raw.

"Bella, don't you dare waste time worrying about me. Your only concern is keeping yourself safe and – please, please- trying not to be reckless."

"Is he still following?"

"Yes. He won't attack the house, though. Not tonight."

He turned off onto the invisible drive, with Alice and Lilly following behind.

**(Lilly's POV)**

I could feel the worry and stress coming from Jasper through the mating bond. I knew it was because I never called him on our way back here, because the tracker was following us and I didn't want to get distracted.

We drove right up to the house. The lights inside were bright and I noticed Jasper on the front porch pacing back and forth.

As soon as the Jeep came to a stop, he was at my door, ripping it open and engulfing me in his arms tightly. We both breathed a sigh of relief as the ache in my chest went away.

"I was so worried about you." He whispered.

"I know," I nodded into his chest. "I'm so sorry I didn't call. He was following us and I couldn't afford to be sidetracked."

"I know baby, it's okay; Alice texted me." He assured me as we turned to walk towards the house just in time to see Emmett pulling Bella out of her seat, tucking her like a football into his vast chest, and run her into the house with Alice and Edward at their sides.

We caught up with them quickly and entered the house. All of them were there; they were already on their feet at the sound of our approach. Laurent stood in their midst. Low growls rumbled deep in Emmett's throat as he set Bella down next to Edward. I looked at Jasper confused about why he would still be here.

"It's okay," he whispered quietly so that only I could hear, as always. "He stayed to warn us."

"He's tracking us," Edward announced, glaring balefully at Laurent.

Laurent's face was unhappy. "I was afraid of that."

Jasper looked at me and sent me his confusion, so I leaned up and my lips quivered with the speed of my silent speech, letting him know everything that we discovered and what our plans were and why he had to pack a bag for us both.

Rosalie flitted to Emmett's side. Her beautiful eyes were intense as the unwillingly flickered to Bella's face furiously.

"What will he do?" Carlisle asked Laurent in chilling tones.

"I'm sorry," he answered. "I was afraid, when your boy there defended her, that it would set him off. Not to mention he was enthralled with Lilly here. I could tell that the moment he laid eyes on her that he wanted her; to possess her."

Edward and Jasper growled at this information.

"Can you stop him?" Jasper asked.

Laurent shook his head. "Nothing stops James when he gets started going after something he wants."

"We'll stop him," Emmett promised. There was no doubt what he meant.

"You can't bring him down. I've never seen anything like him in my three hundred years. He's absolutely lethal. That's why I joined his coven."

His coven, I thought, of course. The show of leadership in the clearing was merely that, a show.

Jasper must have been thinking the same thing that I was because he looked at me a nodded, as did Edward as he read my thoughts.

Laurent was shaking his head. He glanced at Bella and then me, perplexed, and back to Carlisle. "Are you sure it's worth it?"

Edward and Jasper's enraged roars filled the room as Jasper pulled me behind him, pressed firmly against his body; Laurent cringed back.

Carlisle looked gravely at Laurent. "I'm afraid you're going to have to make a choice."

Laurent understood. He deliberated for a moment. His eyes took in every face, and finally swept the bright room.

"I'm intrigued by the life you've created here. But I won't get in the middle of this. I bear none of you any enmity, but I won't go up against James. I think I will head north – to that clan in Denali." He hesitated. "Don't underestimate James. He's got a brilliant mind and unparalleled senses. He's every bit as comfortable in the human world as you seem to be, and he won't come at you head on…I'm sorry for what's been unleashed here. Truly sorry." He bowed his head, but I saw him flicker another puzzled look at Bella specifically.

"Go in peace," was Carlisle's formal answer.

Laurent took another long look around himself, and then he hurried out the door.

The silence lasted less than a second.

"How close?" Carlisle looked to Edward.

Esme was already moving; her hand touched an inconspicuous keypad on the wall and with a groan, huge metal shutters began sealing up the glass wall. Bella and I gaped in surprise.

"About three miles out past the river; he's circling around to meet up with the female."

"What's the plan?"

"We'll lead him of, and then Jasper, Lilly and Alice will run her south."

"And then?"

Edward's tone was deadly. "As soon as Bella and Lilly are clear, we hunt him."

"I guess there's no other choice," Carlisle agreed, his face grim.

Edward turned to Rosalie.

"Get her upstairs and trade clothes," Edward commanded. She stared back at him with livid disbelief.

"Why should I?" she hissed. "What is she to me? Except a menace – a danger you've chosen to inflict on all of us and now Lilly is being threatened!"

I noticed Bella flinch back from the venom in her voice.

"Rose…" Emmett murmured, putting one hand on her shoulder. She shook it off.

But I was watching Edward carefully, as was Bella, knowing his temper, worried about his reaction.

He surprised us both when he looked away from Rosalie as if she hadn't spoken, as if she didn't exist.

"Esme?" he asked calmly.

"Of course," Esme murmured.

Esme was at Bella's side in half a heartbeat, swinging her up easily into her arms, and dashing up the stairs.

"Alright, well, let's get our stuff together and in the car." Jasper said, picking up our bags.

Alice picked up her's and Bella's as well and I followed them out in to the garage. We loaded the bags in to the car and by the time we finished, Bella was back down stairs, dressed in Esme's clothes. Edward and Emmett were ready to leave as Emmett was carrying a heavy-looking backpack over his shoulder. Carlisle was handing something small to Esme. He turned and handed Alice the same thing – it was a tiny silver cell phone.

"Esme and Rosalie will be taking your truck, Bella," he told Bella as he passed. She nodded, glancing warily at Rosalie. She was glowering at Carlisle with a resentful expression.

"Alice, Lilly, Jasper – take the Mercedes. You'll need the dark tint in the south."

We nodded as well.

"We're taking the Jeep."

"Alice," Carlisle asked, "will they take the bait?"

Everyone watched as Alice as she closed her eyes and became incredibly still. I wrapped my arm around Bella's shoulder for support as we waited for her to answer.

Finally her eyes opened. "He'll track you. The woman will follow the truck. We should be able to leave after that." He voice was certain.

"Let's go." Carlisle began to walk towards the kitchen.

Edward was at Bella's side at once and wrapped him in his iron grip, crushing her to him as Jasper came up behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist as he tucked his face into my shoulder, breathing in my scent. I turned my head to catch his lips with mine. He turned me around to face him and wrapped me tightly in to his embrace. He deepened the kiss as his tongue danced with mine. This was my heaven, here in my mate's arms. He lifted me up and my feet came off the floor. Then it was over. He set me down, still holding my face, his glorious eyes burning into mine. He leaned down and gave me one more chaste kiss before pulling back and wrapping his arms around me.

I looked over at Bella and Edward and noticed that they were doing the same thing. It was less passionate, but still filled with just as much love.

Then he turned away, his eyes went black, curiously dead.

And they were gone; him, Carlisle and Emmett.

We stood there; the other's looking away from us. I looked to Bella and noticed that she was crying noiselessly with tears streaming down her face.

I reached over and pulled her to me in a hug as I let her cry it out.

The silence dragged on, and then Esme's phone vibrated in her hand. It flashed to her ear.

"Now," she said. Rosalie stalked out the front door without another glance in Bella's direction, but Esme touched her cheek as she passed us.

"Be safe." Her whisper lingered behind them as they slipped out the door. I heard Bella's truck start thunderously, and then fade away.

Jasper, Alice and I waited. Alice's phone seemed to be at her ear before it buzzed.

"Edward says the woman is on Esme's trail. I'll get the car." She vanished into the shadows the way Edward had gone.

Bella, Jasper and I looked at each other. He stood across the length of the entryway from us…being careful of Bella.

"You're wrong, you know," he said quietly.

"What?" Bella gasped.

I looked between the two of them confused until Jasper continued.

"I can feel what you're feeling now – and you are worth it."

"I'm not," she mumbled. "If anything happens to them, it will be for nothing."

"You're wrong," I repeated for Jasper, as he smiled kindly at her.\

Alice stepped through the door and came towards us with her arms held out for Bella.

"May I?" she asked.

"You're the first one to ask permission." Bella smiled wryly.

She lifted her in her slender arms as easily as Emmett had, shielding her protectively, and then we flew out the door right along with them, leaving the bright lights from the house behind us.

**A/N:**** So they are getting ready to go on the run to get away from James and Victoria. What did everyone think? Read and Review and let me know!**

**If you have any questions or comments, post them in my reviews and I will answer them in my next Author's Note…**

**Ta1ia:**** Oh please I'm so flicking sick of vICKY, can we please kill her when we kill James? Let laurant lead the newborn army in vengeance instead but I really really wa-need vICKY to die when James does. For the love of all that is Stephanie Meyers Twilight please kill the dumb** off.**

_I'm sorry to say that I am going to stick with Victoria leading the newborn army. It wouldn't really make sense for Laurent to be the one to do that, because he is more of a neutral party at this point in time. I'm really sorry to disappoint you. _

**Check out my other stories!**

'Attempting to Covet'  
>'Dhampir'<br>'Far Fetched Realities'  
>'Mirror Image'<br>'Other Worldly Beauty'  
>'Perplexing Revelations'<br>'Pretexting'  
>'The Heart's Desire'<span>** NEW!  
><strong>'The Major'  
>'Twilight ReVAMPed'<span>

**If you enjoyed this story so far, check out some of my other stories on my FanFiction page! Also, I am still accepting Twilight stories that involve Jasper/any female leads or Bella/selected male leads if anyone is looking for a Beta Reader. I will make exceptions on the characters depending on the plot. PM me for details!  
><strong>_- Bella'Xo  
><em>**Xo BellaItalia oX**


	28. Chapter 25

**Disclaimer. ****All publicly recognizable characters, settings etc., are the property of their respective owners. The original characters, ideas and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended. I only do this for fun. –B**

**Chapter 25  
><strong>**(Bella's POV)**

When I woke up I was confused. My thoughts were hazy, still twisted up in dreams and nightmares; it took me longer than it should have to realize where I was.

This room was too bland to belong anywhere but in a hotel. The bedside lamps, bolted to the tables, were a dead giveaway, as were the long drapes made from the same fabric as the bedspread, and the generic watercolor prints on the walls.

I tried to remember how I got here, but nothing came at first.

I did remember the sleek black car, the glass in the windows darker than that on a limousine. The engine was almost silent, though we raced across the black freeways at more than twice the legal speed.

And I remembered Alice sitting with me on the dark leather backseat, while Jasper and Lilly sat up front. Somehow, during the long night, my head had ended up against her granite neck. My closeness didn't seem to bother her at all, and her cool, hard skin was oddly comforting to me. The front of her thin cotton shirt was cold, damp with the tears that streamed from my eyes until, red and sore, they ran dry.

Sleep had evaded me; my aching eyes strained open even though the night finally ended and dawn broke over a low peak somewhere in California. The gray light, streaking across the cloudless sky, stun my eyes. But I couldn't close them; when I did, the images that flashed all too vividly, like still slides from behind my lids were unbearable. Charlie's broken expression – Edward's brutal snarl, teeth bared – Rosalie's resentful glare – the keen-eyed scrutiny of the tracker – the dead look in Edward's eyes after he kissed me the last time. So I fought against my weariness and the sun rose higher.

I was still awake when we came through a shallow mountain pass and the sun, behind us now, reflected off the tiled rooftops of the Valley of the Sun. I didn't have enough emotion left to be surprised that we'd made a three-day journey in one. I stared blackly at the wide, flat expanse laid out in front of me. Phoenix – the palm trees, the scrubby creosote, the haphazard lines of the intersecting freeways, the green swaths of golf courses and turquoise splotches of swimming pools, all submerged in a thing smog and embraced by the short, rocky ridges that weren't really big enough to be called mountains.

The shadows of the palm trees slanted across the freeway – defined, sharper than I remembered, paler than they should be. Nothing could hide in these shadows. The bright, open freeway seemed benign enough. But I felt no relief, no sense of homecoming.

"Which way to the airport, Bella?" Jasper had asked, and I flinched, though his voice was quite soft and un-alarming. It was the first sound, besides the purr of the car, to break the long night's silence.

"Stay on the I-ten," I'd answered automatically. "We'll pass right by it."

My brain had worked slowly through the fog of sleep deprivation.

"Are we flying somewhere?" I'd asked Lilly.

"No, but it's better to be close, just in case."

I remembered beginning the loop around Sky Harbor International…but not ending it. I suppose that must have been when I'd fallen asleep.

Though, now that I'd chased the memories down, I did have a vague impression of leaving the car – the sun was just falling behind the horizon – my arm draped over Alice's shoulder and her arm firm around my waist, dragging me along as I stumbled through the warm, dry shadows.

I had no memory of this room.

I looked at the digital clock on the nightstand. The red numbers claimed it was three o'clock, but they gave no indication if it was night or day. No edge of light escaped the thick curtains, but the room was bright with the light from the lamps.

I rose stiffly and staggered in to the window, pulling back the drapes.

It was dark outside. It must be three in the morning, then. My room looked out on the deserted section of the freeway and the new long-term parking garage for the airport. It was slightly comforting to be able to pinpoint time and place.

I looked down at myself. I was still wearing Esme's clothes, and they didn't fit very well at all. I looked around the room, glad when I discovered my duffel bag on top of the low dresser.

I was on my way to find new clothes when a light tap on the door made me jump.

"Can I come in?" Lilly asked.

I took a deep breath. "Sure."

She walked in, and looked me over cautiously.

"You look like you could sleep longer," she said.

I just shook my head.

She drifted silently to the curtains and closed them securely before turning back to me.

"We'll need to stay inside," she told me.

"Okay." My voice was hoarse; it cracked.

"Thirsty?" she asked.

I shrugged. "I'm okay. How about you?"

"Nothing unmanageable." She smiled. "I ordered some food for you and I, since it's in the front room and it's that time of the week where I need some human food. Edward reminded us that you have to eat a lot more frequently than I do."

I was instantly more alert. "He called?"

"No," she said, and watched as my face fell. "It was before we left. He talked to Alice."

She took my hand carefully and led me through the door into the living room of the hotel suite. I could hear the low buzz of voices coming from the TV. Jasper sat motionlessly on the couch, his eyes watching the news with no glimmer of interest. Alice was in the other chair across from the couch, watching the tv as well.

I sat on the floor next to the coffee table, where a tray of food waited, and began picking at it without noticing what I was eating. Lilly sat down in-between Jasper's legs on the floor against the couch and began picking at the small plate of red meat.

I ate slowly, watching Lilly, turning now and then to glance quickly at Jasper and Alice. It began to dawn on me that they were too still. They never looked away from the screen, though commercials were playing now. I pushed the tray away, my stomach abruptly uneasy. Alice looked down at me.

"What's wrong, Alice?" I asked.

"Nothing's wrong." Her eyes were wide, honest…and I didn't trust them.

"What do we do now?"

"We wait for Carlisle to call."

"And should he have called by now?" I could see that I was near the mark. Alice's eyes flitted from mine to the phone on top of her leather bag and back.

"What does that mean?" My voice quivered, and I fought to control it. "That he hasn't called yet?"

"It just means that they don't have anything to tell us." Lilly answered, reaching over to pull me in to a tight hug.

But her voice was too even, and the air was harder to breathe.

Jasper was suddenly beside us, squatting down on the floor to get down to our level.

"Bella," he said in a suspiciously soothing voice. "You have nothing to worry about. You are completely safe here."

"I know that."

"Then why are you frightened." He asked, confused. He might feel the tenor of my emotions, but he couldn't read the reasons behind them.

"You heard what Laurent said." My voice was just a whisper, but I was sure they could hear me. "He said James was lethal. What if something goes wrong, and they get separated? If something happens to any of them, Carlisle, Emmett…Edward…" I gulped. "If that wild female hurts Esme…" My voice had grown higher, a note of hysteria beginning to rise in it. "How could I live with myself when it's my fault? None of you should be risking yourselves for me – "

"Bella, Bella, stop," he interrupted me, his words pouring out so quickly they were hard to understand. "You're worrying about all the wrong things, Bella. Trust me on this – none of us are in jeopardy. You are under too much strain as it is; don't add to it with wholly unnecessary worries. Listen to me!" he ordered, for I had looked away. "Our family is strong. Our only fear is losing you and Lilly getting kidnapped."

"I understand about Lilly, but why should you – "

Lilly interrupted this time, touching my cheek with her cold fingers. "It's been almost a century that Edward's been alone. Now he's found you. You can't see the changes that we see, I who has been there before you and them who have been with him for decades. Do you think any of us want to look into his eyes for the next hundred years if he loses you?"

My guilt slowly subsided as I looked into her bright green eyes. But, even as the calm spread over me, I knew I couldn't trust my feelings with Jasper there.

**(Jasper's POV)**

It was a very long day.

We stayed in the room. Alice called down to the front desk and asked them to ignore our maid service for now. The windows stayed shut, the TV on, though no one watched it. At regular intervals, food was delivered for Bella. I noticed her every now and then staring at the silver phone on Alice's bag.

It was clear that we were handling the suspense far better than she did. She would fidget and pace as Lilly and I were curled up on the couch and Alice sat at the desk chair in the corner of the room. Our eyes would follow her imperceptibly as she moved. Sometimes she would stare in to space or at the wallpaper

As the afternoon wore on, Bella went back to bed, simply for something to do. We were all bored and Lilly was the only thing keeping me sane being cooped up in this little hotel room. Bella would have nightmares often, so I found myself using my gift to calm and mellow her and steer her dreams towards less troubling topics.

We would hunt in shifts, except for Lilly and I who would go together, not wanting her to be alone and give James the chance to snatch her.

We were currently lying together on the couch with her beside me as I ran my fingertips up and down the side of her body. Alice was sitting in the chair and Bella was sprawled out on the floor with her hands behind her head, looking up at the ceiling. The TV was on mute and the room was dark, except for the glow from the television. It was late night, or early morning, I guess you could say.

"Lilly?" She asked.

"Yes?"

She kept her voice very calm but I could feel the turmoil in her emotions. "What do you think they're doing?"

"Carlisle wanted to lead the tracker as far north as possible, wait for him to get close, and then turn and ambush him. Esme and Rosalie were supposed to head west as long as they could keep the female behind them. If she turned around, they were to head back to Forks and keep an eye on your dad. So I imagine things are going well if they can't call. It means the tracker is close enough that they don't want him to overhear."

"And Esme?"

"I think she must be back in Forks. She won't call if there's any chance the female will overhear. I expect they're all just being very careful."

"Do you think they're safe, really?"

"Bella, how many times do we have to tell you that there's no danger to us?" Alice jumped in.

"Would you tell me the truth though?"

"You know I would never lie to you, Bella." Lilly promised. "I will always tell you the truth." Her voice was earnest.

It was quiet again for a moment. Bella was definitely deliberating about something.

I buried my nose in Lilly's neck as I took in her scent and pressed my body closer to hers as I wrapped her tightly in my arms and wound my fingers in-between hers.

"_Je taime,"_ **(I love you)** Lilly whispered so that only I could hear.

"I love you too," I grinned into her neck, placing a chaste kiss on her neck.

"How do you become a vampire?" Bella asked out of the clear blue, catching us all off guard. None of us answered as I looked at Jasper with wide eyes and Alice stayed silence.

When she realized that no one was answering her question, she sat up and looked around at all of us. Lilly stayed facing me with her head tucked under my chin as I faced the room. Alice had an ambivalent expression on her face as she sat with her legs crossed in her chair.

"Edward doesn't want me to tell you that," she said firmly, but I sensed she didn't agree.

"That's not fair. I think I have a right to know."

"I know."

Bella continued to look at her, waiting.

She sighed. "He'll be extremely angry."

"It's none of his business. This is between you and me. Alice, as a friend, I'm begging you."

She looked at me with her splendid, wise eyes…choosing, asking what I thought she should do. I gave her a slight head nod, letting her know that I thought that she should go ahead and tell Bella. It was only fair, even though Edward really should've told her long before now.

Alice let out a loud sigh. "I'll tell you the mechanics of it," she said finally, "but I don't remember it myself, and I've never done it or seen it done, so keep in mind that I can only tell you the theory. If you really want to know more, you will have to ask Jasper or Edward or Carlisle."

She nodded her head and waited.

"As predators, we have a glut of weapons in our physical arsenal – much, much more than really necessary. The strength, the speed, the acute senses, not to mention those of us like Edward, Jasper, Lilly and I, who have extra senses as well. And then, like a carnivorous flower, we are physically attractive to our prey."

She was very still as she listened to Alice with baited breath.

Alice smiled a wide, ominous smile. "We have another fairly superfluous weapon. We're also venomous," she said, her teeth glistening. "The venom doesn't kill – it's merely incapacitating. It works slowly, spreading through the bloodstream, so that, once bitten, our prey is in too much physical pain to escape us. Mostly superfluous, as I said. If we're that close, the prey doesn't escape. Of course, there are always exceptions. Carlisle, for example."

"So…if the venom is left to spread…" Bella murmured.

"It takes a few days for the transformation to be complete, depending on how much venom is in the bloodstream, how close the venom enters to the heart. As long as the heart keeps beating, the poison spreads, healing, changing the body as it moves through it. Eventually the heart stops, and the conversion is finished. But all that time, every minute of it, a victim would be wishing for death."

Bella shivered.

It's not pleasant, you see."

"Edward said that it was very hard to do…I don't quite understand," Bella said.

"We're also like sharks in a way. Once we taste the blood, or even smell it for that matter, it becomes very hard to keep from feeding. Sometimes impossible. So you see, to actually bite someone, to taste the blood, it would begin the frenzy. It's difficult on both sides – the blood-lust on the one hand, the awful pain on the other."

"Why do you think you don't remember?" Lilly asked curiously.

"I don't know. For everyone else, the pain of transformation is the sharpest memory they have of their human life. I remember nothing of being human." Her voice was wistful.

We lay silently, again, wrapped in our individual meditations. The seconds ticked by, as I was enveloped in my thoughts and the euphoric scent of my mate in my arms.

I was so afraid of losing her to James. Just thinking about him having her in his possession killed me and made me sick to my stomach. I didn't even know that vampires could get sick to their stomach.

"Tout va bien se passer, mon amour."** (Everything is going to be okay, my love)** She tried to assure me, feeling my worry and fear through our mating bond.

"Je l'espère vraiment, ma chérie." **(I really hope so, darlin'.) **I murmured, nuzzling my face in to her neck.

"Je ne vais pas le laisser me faire. Je vais utiliser mon cadeau et de le faire se tuer avant que je lui permets de me prendre loin de vous. " **(I won't let him have me. I will use my gift and have him kill himself before I allow him to take me away from you.) **She said with conviction, making me feel a little bit better, but I wouldn't allow it to get that far. I would not let him anywhere within a 100 mile radius of her.

"Je t'aime, ma chérie." **(I love you, sweetheart.)**

"Je t'aime plus." **(I love you more)** She smiled.

"jamais." **(Never)** I shook my head, smiling back at her before placing my lips on hers in a chaste kiss.

Then, without any warning, Alice's emotions became panicked and she leaped up from the chair and on to her feet. We all turned to stare at her, startled.

"Something's changed." Her voice was urgent

Lilly and I sat up on the couch as I wrapped her tightly in to my arms as we watched Alice continue to search the future. She stood to pace the length of the room deep in thought before moving to sit on the other side of the couch as Bella crawled over to the opposite side of the coffee table that sat in front of the couch.

"What do you see?" I asked intently.

Her eyes were focused on something very far away. "I see a room. It's long, and there are mirrors everywhere." She explained. "The floor is wooden. He's in the room, and he's waiting. There's gold…a gold stripe across the mirrors."

"Where is the room?" Lilly asked.

"I don't know. Something is missing – another decision hasn't been made yet."

"How much time?" I asked.

"It's soon. He'll be in the mirror room today or maybe tomorrow. It all depends. He's waiting for something. And he's in the dark now."

My voice was calm, methodical, as I questioned her in a practiced way that I learned from being in the southern wars. It wouldn't do to panic and let the emotions around me distract me from the task at hand. "What is he doing?"

"He's watching TV…no, he's running a VCR, in the dark, in another place."

"Can you see where he is?"

"No, it's too dark."

"And the mirror room, what else is there?"

"Just the mirrors, and the gold. It's a band, around the room. And there's a black table with a big stereo, and a TV. He's touching the VCR there, but he doesn't watch the way he does in the dark room. This is the room where he waits." Her eyes drifted, then focused on my face.

"There's nothing else?"

She shook her head. We looked at each other, motionless.

"What does it mean?" Bella asked breaking the silence.

Neither of us answered for a moment, and then I looked at Bella.

"It means the tracker's plans have changed. He's made a decision that will lead him to the mirror room, and the dark room."

"But we don't know where those rooms are?"

"No,"

"But we do know that he won't be in the mountains north of Washington, being hunted. He'll elude them." Lilly's voice was bleak as she thought about this.

"Should we call?" Bella asked. They traded a serious look, undecided.

And the phone rang.

Alice was across the room before I could lift my head to look at it.

She pushed a button and held the phone to her ear, but she didn't speak first.

"Carlisle," she breathed. She didn't seem surprised or relieved, the way I knew Bella was feeling.

"_Alice, is everything okay? Is Bella and Lilly alright?"_ He rushed out.

"Yes," she said, glancing at Bella.

"_We lost him; the tracker. We think he's figured it out. He also seemed to have figured it out. We tracked him to an airport, but we don't know where he went from there."_

"I just saw him." She described again the vision she'd seen. "Whatever made him get on that plane…it was leading him to those rooms."

"_Is Bella near you? Can I talk to her?"_ Edward asked from the background.

"Yes," Alice said into the phone, and then she spoke to Bella. "Bella?"

She held the phone out toward her and Bella ran to it as I pulled Lilly closer to me, thankful for the fact that she was here with me in my arms and safe.

"Hello?" Bella breathed.

"_Bella,"_ Edward said.

"Oh, Edward! I was so worried."

"_Bella,"_ he sighed in frustration,_ "I told you not to worry about anything but yourself."_ I could feel and hear the relief in her voice as she talked to him for the first time since we left. It was like the cloud of despair that was hovering over her head lightened and drifted back as they spoke.

"Where are you?"

"_We're outside of Vancouver."_ I felt Lilly tense in my arms at the mention of her home town. _"Bella, I'm sorry – we lost him. He seems suspicious of us – he's careful to stay just far enough away that I can't hear what he's thinking. But he's gone now – it looks like he got on a plane. We think he's heading back to Forks to start over."_

"I know. Alice saw that he got away."

"_You don't have to worry, though. He won't find anything to lead him to you. You just have to stay there and wait till we find him again."_

"I'll be fine. Is Esme with Carlisle?"

"_Yes – the female has been in town. She went to the house, but while Charlie was at work. She hasn't gone near him, so don't be afraid. He's safe with Esme and Rosalie watching."_

"What is she doing?"

"_Probably trying to pick up the trail. She's been all through the town during the night. Rosalie traced her through the airport, all the roads around town, the school…she's digging, Bella, but there's nothing to find."_

"And you're sure Charlie's safe?"

"_Yes, Esme won't let him out of her sight. And we'll be there soon. If the tracker gets anywhere near Forks, we'll have him."_

"I miss you." She whispered longingly. I felt so horrible that they were separated because of all of this. I breathed in Lilly's scent again, calming the Major from thoughts of being separated from our Lilly or Lilith.

"_I know, Bella. Believe me, I know. It's like you've taken half my self away with you."_

"Come and get it, then," she challenged.

"_Soon, as soon as I possibly can. I will make you safe first."_ His voice was hard.

"I love you," she reminded him.

"_Could you believe that, despite everything I've put you through, I love you, too?"_

"Yes, I can, actually."

"_I'll come for you soon."_

"I'll be waiting."

As soon as the phone went dead, the cloud of depression began to creep back over her again.

She turned to give the phone back to Alice and found that Alice was bent over the coffee table with Lilly sketching on a piece of hotel stationery. I leaned over her shoulder as Bella sat down next to Alice.

She drew a room: long, rectangular, with a thinner, square section at the back. The wooden planks that made up the floor stretched lengthwise across the room. Down the walls were lines denoting the breaks in the mirrors. And then, wrapping around the walls, waist high, a long band. The band Alice said was gold.

"The emergency exit sign goes there." Bella said pointing to the corner of the room where the fire escape was. We all looked up at her surprised. "It's a ballet studio."

"Do you know this room?" I asked, my voice sounding calm, once again, but there was a clear undercurrent of concern. If she knew this room, then James might know where we are.

Alice bent her head to her work, her hand flying across the page now, the shape of an emergency exit taking shape against the back wall, the stereo and TV on a low table by the front right corner.

"It looks like a place I used to go for dance lessons – when I was eight or nine. It was shaped just the same." She touched the page where the square section jutted out, narrowing the back part of the room. "That's where the bathrooms were – the doors were through the other dance floor. But the stereo was here" she pointed to the left corner – "it was older, and there wasn't a TV. There was a window in the waiting room – you would see the room from this perspective if you looked through it."

We all continued to stare at her in surprise and wonder.

"Are you sure it's the same room?" Lilly asked, trying to make sure that she was positive that she was thinking of the right place.

"No, not at all – I suppose most dance studios would look the same – the mirrors, the bar." She traced her finger along the ballet bar set against the mirrors. "It's just the shape that looked familiar." She touched the paper where Alice drew the door.

"Would you have any reason to go there now?" Alice asked, breaking Bella reverie.

"No, I haven't been there in almost ten years. I was a terrible dancer – they always put me in the back for recitals," she admitted.

"So there's no way it could be connected with you?" Lilly asked intently.

"No, I don't even think the same person owns it. I'm sure it's just another dance studio, somewhere." She said, but she didn't seem so sure.

"Where was the studio you went to?" I asked in a casual tone.

"It was just around the corner from my mom's house. I used to walk there after school…" she said, her voice trailing off. Lilly, Alice and I exchanged a look. He knew where we were, I was sure of it.

I could feel the Major coming to the surface so I pulled Lilly back in to my embrace, yet again, and breathed in her scent while nuzzling her neck before looking back up at Bella.

"So the studio was here in Phoenix then?" I asked, still trying to keep my voice casual, even though I was panicking inside. If he got to Bella, then he would get to Lilly as well. Especially since I heard that he wanted to offer her to Lilly as some sort of offering so that she would accept him as her 'master' of some sort.

"Yes," Bella whispered. "Fifty-eigth Street and Cactus."

We all sat in silence, staring at the drawing as I continued to calm myself with Lilly's scent.

"Alice, is that phone safe?" Bella asked, breaking the silence.

"Yes," she reassured her. "The number would just trace back to Washington."

"Then I can use it to call my mom."

"I thought she was in Florida?"

"She is – but she's coming home soon, and she can't come back to that house while…" her voice trembled. I sent her some calm and serenity, trying to keep her from breaking down.

"How will you reach her?" Lilly asked in a small voice. From her emotions, she clearly had a lot on her mind from all of this as well. I hoped that the emotions I sent out in the room would affect her as well and keep her calm.

"They don't have a permanent number except at the house – she's supposed to check her messages regularly."

"Jasper?" Alice asked.

I thought about it. "I don't think there's any way it could hurt – be sure you don't say where you are, of course."

She reached eagerly for the phone and dialed her number. It ran four times, and then I heard her mom's breezy voice telling her to leave a message.

"Mom," she said after the beep, "it's me. Listen, I need you to do something. It's important. As soon as you get this message, call me at this number." Alice was already at her side, writing the number for her on the bottom of her picture. She read off the number to her mom twice before continuing with the message. "Please don't go anywhere until you talk to me. Don't worry, I'm okay, but I have to talk to you right away, no matter how late you get this call, all right? I love you, Mom. Bye."

Little did I know that that message was going to be the downfall to our plan and bring all of the trouble our way.

**A/N:**** Cliffy! Sorry guys, I know that this was a boring chapter, but it had to be written. I couldn't just skip all of it or none of the next few chapters would make any kind of sense. But either way, I hope you like it! **

**If you have any questions or comments, post them in my reviews and I will respond to them on my next Author's Note!**

**Check out my other stories!**

'Attempting to Covet'  
>'Dhampir'<br>'Far Fetched Realities'  
>'Mirror Image'<br>'Other Worldly Beauty'  
>'Perplexing Revelations'<br>'Pretexting'  
>'The Heart's Desire'<span>** NEW!  
><strong>'The Major'  
>'Twilight ReVAMPed'<span>

**If you enjoyed this story so far, check out some of my other stories on my FanFiction page! Also, I am still accepting Twilight stories that involve Jasper/any female leads or Bella/selected male leads if anyone is looking for a Beta Reader. I will make exceptions on the characters depending on the plot. PM me for details!  
><strong>_- Bella'Xo  
><em>**Xo BellaItalia oX**


	29. Chapter 26

**Disclaimer. ****All publicly recognizable characters, settings etc., are the property of their respective owners. The original characters, ideas and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended. I only do this for fun. –B**

**Chapter 26  
><strong>**(Bella's POV)**

I could feel it was too early again when I woke, and I knew I was getting the schedule of my days and nights slowly reversed. I looked next to me and noticed that Lilly must have gotten her 3-4 hours for the week and got up already. I lay in my bed and listened to the quiet voices of the three in the other room. That they were loud enough for me to hear at all was strange. I rolled till my feet touched the floor and then staggered to the living room.

The clock on the TV said it was just after two in the morning. Lilly and Jasper were sitting together on the sofa, and Alice was in the chair across from them sketching again. They didn't look up when I entered as Lilly and Jasper were too engrossed with each other and Alice in her sketches.

I crept to Alice's side to peek.

"Did you see something more?" I asked her quietly.

"Yes. Something's brought him back to the room with the VCR, but it's light now."

I watched as Alice drew a square room with dark beams across its low ceiling. The walls were paneled in wood, a little too dark, out of date. The floor had a dark carpet with a pattern in it. There was a large window against the south wall, and an opening through the west wall led to the living room. One side of that entrance was stone – a large tan stone fireplace that was open to both rooms. The focus of the room from this perspective, the TV and VCR, balanced on a too-small wooden stand, were in the southwest corner of the room. An aged sectional sofa curved around in front of the TV, a round coffee table in front of it.

"The phone goes there," I whispered pointing.

Three pairs of eternal eyes stared at me. I even managed to break through the force field that Lilly and Jasper had around each other, which was impressive from what I have observed so far.

"That's my mother's house."

Alice was already off the chair, phone in hand, dialing. I stared at the precise rendering of my mother's family room. I felt myself collapse at the opposite end of the couch from Lilly and Jasper, just staring at the sketch in my hands.

Uncharacteristically, Jasper slid closer to me as he moved Lilly's legs off of his lap. He lightly touched his hand to my shoulder, and the physical contact seemed to make his calming influence stronger. The panic stayed dull, unfocused. He's really been a big help the past few days. Lilly crawled across the couch and moved around us to sit on the arm of the sofa and put her arm around me and kissed my hair on the top of my head.

"It's going to be okay, Bella." Lilly murmured. "I promise,"

I looked up at her and I could feel my eyes brimming over with tears. "Thank you for being my best friend." I whispered.

"That's not something you have to thank me for." She said shaking her head. "You've always been there for me, even when you learned about what I was."

I gave her a watery smile and leaned back against the sofa. Alice's lips were trembling with the speed of her words, the low buzzing impossible to decipher. I couldn't concentrate.

"Bella," Alice said. I looked at her numbly.

"Bella, Edward is coming to get you. He and Emmett and Carlisle are going to take you somewhere, to hide you for a while."

"Edward is coming?" The words were like a life vest, holding my head above the flood.

"Yes, he's catching the first flight out of Seattle. We'll meet him at the airport, and you'll leave with him."

"But, my mother… he came here for my mother, Alice!" Despite Jasper, the hysteria bubbled up in my voice.

"Jasper and I will stay till she's safe." Lilly voted.

Jasper nodded his agreement, "I need to keep Lilly safe, so we can't be with the family for a while, so what better place than here where we can keep watch over your mother?"

I watched as Lilly gave him a grateful smile over my head.

"I can't win, you guys. You can't guard everyone I know forever. Don't you see what he's doing? He's not tracking me at all. He'll find someone, he'll hurt someone I love…I can't – "

"We'll watch him, Bella," Lilly continued to assure me.

"And what if you get hurt, Lilly? What if he gets you because you were watching my mother? Do you think that's okay with me? Do you think it's only my human family he can hurt me with?"

Alice looked meaningfully at Jasper. A deep, heavy fog of lethargy washed over me, and my eyes closed without my permission. My mind struggled against the fog, realizing what was happening. I forced my eyes open and stood up, stepping away from Jasper's hand.

"I don't want to go back to sleep," I snapped.

I walked to my room and shut the door, slammed it really, so I could be free to go to pieces privately. Lilly didn't follow me this time. For three and a half hours I stared at the wall, curled in a ball, rocking. My mind went around in circles, trying to come up with some way out of this nightmare. There was no escape, no reprieve. I could see only one possible end looming darkly in my future. The only question was how many other people would be hurt before I reached it.

The only solace, the only hope I had left, was knowing that I would see Edward soon. Maybe, if I could just see his face again, I would also be able to see the solution that eluded me now.

When the phone rang, I returned to the front room, a little ashamed of my behavior. I hoped I hadn't offended any of them, that they would know how grateful I was for the sacrifices they were making on my account.

Alice was talking as rapidly as ever, but what caught my attention was that, for the first time, Lilly and Jasper were not in the room. I looked at the clock – it was five-thirty in the morning.

"They're just boarding their place," Alice told me. "They'll land at nine-forty-five." Just a few more hours to keep breathing till he was here.

"Where's Lilly and Jasper?"

"They went to check out."

"They aren't staying here?"

"No, they're relocating closer to your mother's house."

My stomach twisted uneasily at her words.

But the phone rang again, distracting me. She looked surprised, but I was already walking forward, reaching hopefully for the phone.

"Hello?" Alice asked. "No, she's right here." She held the phone out to me. 'Your mother,' she mouthed.

"Hello?"

"Bella? Bella?" It was my mother's voice, in a familiar tone I had heard a thousand times in my childhood, anytime I'd gotten too close to the edge of the sidewalk, or strayed out of her sight in a crowded place. It was the sound of panic.

I sighed. I'd been expecting this, though I'd tried to make my message as unalarming as possible without lessening the urgency of it.

"Calm down, Mom," I said in my most soothing voice, walking slowly away from Alice.

I wasn't sure if I could lie as convincingly with her eyes on me. "Everything is fine, okay? Just give me a minute and I'll explain everything, I promise."

I paused; surprised that she hadn't interrupted me yet.

"Mom?"

"Be very careful not to say anything until I tell you to." The voice I heard now was as unfamiliar as it was unexpected. It was a man's tenor voice, a very pleasant, generic voice – the kind of voice that you heard in the background of luxury car commercials. He spoke very quickly.

"No, I don't need to hurt your mother, so please do exactly as I say, and she'll be fine." He paused for a minute while I listened in mute horror. "That's very good," he congratulated. "Now repeat after me, and do try to sound natural. Please say, 'No, Mom, stay where you are."

"No, Mom, stay where you are." My voice was barely more than a whisper.

"I can see this is going to be difficult." The voice was amused, still light and friendly. "Why don't you walk into another room now so your face doesn't ruin everything? There's no reason for your mother to suffer. As you're walking, please say, 'Mom, please listen to me.' Say it now."

"Mom, please listen to me," my voice pleaded. I walked very slowly to the bedroom, feeling Alice's worried stare on my back. I shut the door behind me, trying to think clearly through the terror that gripped my brain.

"There now, are you alone? Just answer yes or no."

"Yes."

"But they can still hear you, I'm sure."

"Yes."

"All right, then," the agreeable voice continued, "say, 'Mom, trust me.'"

"Mom, trust me."

"This worked out rather better than I expected. I was prepared to wait, but your mother arrived ahead of schedule. It's easier this way, isn't it? Less suspense, less anxiety for you. It's even easier for me, considering you and Lilly are in the same place."

I waited.

"Now, I want you to listen very carefully. I'm going to need you to take Lilly, and get away from your friends; do you think you can do that? Answer yes or no."

"No." How the hell was I supposed to get convince Lilly to do something like that? Not to mention, get away from Alice and Jasper. Jasper has had Lilly under lock and key since we've arrived. Even when we slept in here together, he was in the chair in the corner watching her.

"I'm sorry to hear that. I was hoping you would be a little more creative than that. Do you think that the two of you could get away from them if your mother's life depended on it? Answer yes or no."

Somehow, there had to be a way. I remembered that we were going to the airport. I knew if I told her what was happening, that she would help me. Sky Harbor International Airport: crowded, confusingly laid out…

"Yes."

"That's better. I'm sure it won't be easy, but if I get the slightest hint that the two of you have company, well, that would be very bad for your mother," the friendly voice promised. "You must know enough about us by now to realize how quickly I would know if you guys tried to bring anyone along with you. And how little time I would need to deal with you mother if that was the case. Do you understand? Answer yes or no."

"Yes." My voice broke.

"Very good, Bella. Now this is what you have to do. I want you both to go to your mother's house. Next to the phone there will be a number. Call it, and I'll tell you where to go from there." I already knew where I would go, and where this would end. But I would follow his instructions exactly. "Can you do that? Answer yes or no."

"Yes."

"Before noon, please, Bella. I haven't got all day," he said politely.

"Where's Phil?" I asked tersely.

"Ah, be careful now, Bella. Wait until I ask you to speak, please."

I waited.

"It's important, now, that you don't make your friends suspicious when you go back to them. Tell them that your mother called, and that you talked her out of coming home for the time being. Now repeat after me, 'Thank you, Mom.' Say it now."

"Thank you, Mom." The tears were coming. I tried to fight them back.

"Say, 'I love you, Mom, I'll see you soon.' Say it now."

"I love you, Mom." My voice was thick. "I'll see you soon," I promised.

"Goodbye, Bella. I look forward to seeing you and my beautiful Lilly flower again." He hung up.

I held the phone to my ear. My joints were frozen with terror – I couldn't unbend my fingers to drop it.

I knew I had to think, but my head was filled with the sound of my mother's panic. Seconds ticked by while I fought for control. Slowly, slowly, my thoughts started to break past that brick wall of pain. To plan. For I had no choices now but one: convince Lilly to leave with me and go to the mirror room to die while she is subjected to who knows what by James. I had no guarantees, nothing to give to keep my mother alive. I could only hope that James would be satisfied with winning the game, that beating Edward and Jasper would be enough, along with obtaining Lilly. Despair gripped me; there was no way to bargain, nothing I could offer or withhold that could influence him. If I tell Lilly to wait for my mother to be freed, he would just kill her and I before going after Lilly until he got her…just like me.

But maybe… Lilly's gift! Could that help us? Could she use her gift to get us out of this? At the very least, surely she could use her gift at some point on him. All she would have to do would be to look at him. I know she had been working to try to train herself so that she didn't have to look at the object or person, along with teleportation, but the best she could do was small objects, so I knew it would be too much to ask to teleport my mother out of there. Then afterwards, she could compel my mother to forget about the whole encounter. But unfortunately that is too much to ask. We will have to rely on her persuasion gift. I had no choice, but I had to try. We had to try.

I pushed the terror back as well as I could. My decision was made. It did no good to waste time agonizing over the outcome. I had to think clearly, because Alice, Jasper and Lilly were waiting for me, and talking to Lilly, and then evading the other two was absolutely essential and absolutely impossible.

I was suddenly grateful that Jasper was gone. If he had been here to feel my anguish in the last five minutes, how could I have kept them from being suspicious until I was ready for Lilly to find out? Jasper was going to hate me for this. I choked back the dread, the anxiety and tried to stifle it. I couldn't afford it now. I didn't know when he would return.

I concentrated on our escape.

**(Lilly's POV)**

We walked back in to the hotel room after checking out, only to find Alice in a vision as she was bent over the desk, gripping the edge with two hands. Her eyes were blank and dazed with a look of utter horror on her face. Bella was at her side and from the worried expressions on both Jasper and Bella's faces, I knew something was wrong.

"Alice!" Jasper's voice whipped, and we flitted behind her, both of us with one hand curling over hers, loosening them from their grip on the table. Across the room, the door swing shut with a low click.

"What is it?" I demanded.

She turned her face towards Jazz as she wrapped her arms around him and buried her face in his chest. I bit back a growl, knowing that now was not the time for my mating instincts to go awry. "Bella, Lilly" she said.

"We're right here," Bella replied.

Alice's head twisted around, her eyes locking on us as we stood side by side with worried expressions gracing our features. Her eyes and expression were still strangely blank. "I saw her dead and you being..." She trailed off as she answered our question at vampire speed, as not to worry Bella if there was a way to change it.

Jasper snarled and I watched as his eyes changed from the familiar golden hue to the pitch black of the Major.

"What did you see?" Bella asked again, but strangely, there was no question in her flat, uncaring voice. I didn't have time to dwell on it, because here she stood, completely oblivious to what was happening and the danger that she was in while in the presence of the Major.

The Major looked at her sharply. She kept her expression vacant and waited. His eyes were confused as they flickered swiftly between my face, Bella's and Alice's, feeling the mixture of emotions from the three of us.

I felt a tranquil atmosphere settle around us. I welcomed it, using it to keep my emotions disciplined, under control. I couldn't let the Major feel my fear and have it set him off and have Bella or Alice harmed because of it.

The Major grabbed my wrist and pulled me into his chest as he wrapped me in to his embrace as he kept his eyes on Alice and Bella.

"Alice?" Bella questioned again as she kept her eyes on Jasper and I, looking at us in confusion and wonder.

"Nothing, really," she answered finally, her voice remarkably calm and convincing. "Just the same room as before."

Bella turned her gaze to Alice and looked at her suspiciously but didn't call her out on the lie, or press for more details, which I found really out of character for her. She knew something and that's why she's acting so strange. I can feel it in my gut.

Alice finally looked at Bella, her expression smooth and withdrawn. "Did you want breakfast?" She asked changing the subject.

"No, I'll eat at the airport." She was very calm, too. She went to the bathroom to shower and Alice excused herself to the bedroom to wait for Bella, as to give the Major and me some time to ourselves. Honestly, that was probably the safest route for either of them with the Major on the loose.

As soon as the bedroom door clicked shut, I was dragged to the sofa and pulled down on to the Major's lap as I straddled him with one leg on each side of his waist causing my tight fitted dress to ride up.

"She's up to something." The Major drawled as he raked his hands up and down my exposed thighs.

"I know," I agreed, "she is acting way too out of character for my liking. The Bella I know wouldn't have accepted Alice's vague description of her last vision."

"Hmm…" he nodded absentmindedly as his hands glided higher this time around and pushed my tight fitted dress up over my hips, causing my lust to spike.

"Hey now, Major," I purred giving him a sexy smirk, "what do you think you're doing?"

He leaned forward and pressed his face into my neck, his lips just barely grazing his mating mark. "I think you know exactly what I'm doing," He responded and I could feel him grin against his mark, causing a euphoric tingle to sweep through my body. He growled as he felt my emotions spike and hooked his fingers under my panties and ripped them off with a quick tug.

I ran my fingers down his chest to the button of his jeans, undoing it with the flick of my wrist. I reached my hand into his jeans and found him going commando, causing me to groan as I grabbed his erect member. A growl resounded throughout the room as I began to stroke him and he met my strokes with even thrusts of his own. I felt his fingers dip into my lower lips as he continued to kiss and nip his mark on my neck. He moaned at the feel of my wetness and plunged two fingers into my core bringing about a moan of my own.

He continued to thrust his fingers in to me as I stroked his dick, occasionally running my thumb over the head and spreading the frequent drops of pre-cum. He would let out a lustful growl every time I did this, loving the vibrations it would sent through my body against his mark.

Finally, he removed his fingers and gripped my hips with both hands and lifted me up and slammed me down on to his dick, causing groans to emit from both of our lips as we reveled in the completeness of our bodies. We kept our onyx eyes locked together until I began to roll and grind my hips as he met me thrust for thrust and neared our climaxes in a steady pace. I could feel myself getting closer and closer to my release as we kissed, nipped and licked at each other in random places.

Finally, my walls began to quiver as I began my climax, causing my fangs to elongate before I sunk them directly in to my mating mark on his neck. He roared as he released inside me before sinking his own fangs in to his mating mark, bringing a stronger wave of euphoric and blissful pleasure to sweep through my entire body.

We came down from our rapturous highs, removing our mouths from each other's necks and our fangs retracted back in to our gums.

"I love you," I breathed as I collapsed on to his chest and wrapped my arms under his arms and up on to his shoulders.

"As I love you," The Major drawled before he retreated back in to the cage inside of Jasper's subconscious.

We stayed put, enjoying the after-glows of our climaxes and I could hear Bella as she left the bathroom and began to move about her room.

"Alice? What was that with Jasper out there?" She asked hesitantly.

"That wasn't Jasper, but his inner vampire that just made an appearance."

"Inner vampire?" Bella questioned.

"To understand, you would need to hear Jasper's story, and that is his to tell you, but during dangerous situations, Jasper's inner vampire, known as 'the Major' makes an appearance in order to protect his mate. It's almost like he is two different people. The difference is that the Major is very dangerous and the most feared vampire to have ever walked the earth. Only Lilly has any control over the Major." Alice explained.

"Does every vampire have an inner vampire?"

"No," Alice denied, "the only vampires that I have ever known to have one are Jasper and Lilly. Lilly's is named Lilith as Jasper's is the Major."

"Oh," Bella mused before she began to speak again, "Alice?"

"Yes?" She was wary.

"How does it work? The things that you see?" Bella's voice sounded bored, but curious and I knew that there was more to the question than what she made it seem. "Edward said it wasn't definite…that things change?"

I stood and dislocated myself from Jasper and straightened out my dress as he fixed himself up as well while we continued to listen to their conversation.

"Yes, things change…" Alice murmured, "some things are more certain than others…like the weather. People are harder. I only see the course they're on while they're on it. Once they change their minds – make a new decision, no matter how small – the whole future shifts."

"So you couldn't see James in Phoenix until he decided to come here?" She asked thoughtfully.

"Yes," she agreed, wary again.

Oh, Bella was definitely up to something. The only question was what.

**A/N:**** There, I gave you guys another Lemon! I hope you liked the chapter! So, what do you think Bella is going to do to get Lilly to go with her to meet James? What do you think will happen when they get to the Ballet studio? Review and let me know what you think should happen!**

**If you have any questions of comments, post them in my reviews and I will answer them in my next Author's Note!**

**Check out my other stories!**

'Attempting to Covet'  
>'Dhampir'<br>'Far Fetched Realities'  
>'Mirror Image'<br>'Other Worldly Beauty'  
>'Perplexing Revelations'<br>'Pretexting'  
>'The Heart's Desire'<span>** NEW!  
><strong>'The Major'  
>'Twilight ReVAMPed'<span>

**If you enjoyed this story so far, check out some of my other stories on my FanFiction page! Also, I am still accepting Twilight stories that involve Jasper/any female leads or Bella/selected male leads if anyone is looking for a Beta Reader. I will make exceptions on the characters depending on the plot. PM me for details!  
><strong>_- Bella'Xo  
><em>**Xo BellaItalia oX**


	30. Chapter 27

**Disclaimer. ****All publicly recognizable characters, settings etc., are the property of their respective owners. The original characters, ideas and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended. I only do this for fun. –B**

**A/N:**** I'm sorry that I have been away from my stories for so long. Real life has caught up with me and had me running around like a chicken without a head for the past few weeks. But I'm back now and ready to continue with my stories! I apologize to anyone who has been kept waiting. Here's my next chapter and I hope ya'll like it…**

**Chapter 27  
><strong>**(Bella's POV)**

I knew that she hadn't seen Lilly and I in the mirror room with James until I'd made the decision to meet him there. It made me hopeful that I will be able to convince Lilly to come with me there to save my Mom's life. I tried not to think about what else she might have seen. I didn't want my panic to make Jasper more suspicious than I knew he already was. They would be watching me twice as carefully now, anyway, after Alice's vision. This was going to be impossible. I also knew that Jasper would never forgive me for putting his mate in direct danger with James. That is…if we manage to get out of this alive.

We got to the airport and luck was with me, or maybe it was just good odds. Edward's plane was landing in terminal four, the largest terminal, where most flights landed – so it wasn't surprising that his was. But it was the terminal I needed: the biggest, most confusing. And there was a door on level three that might be the only chance.

We parked on the fourth floor of the huge garage. I led the way, for once more knowledgeable about my surroundings than they were. We took the elevator down to level three, where the passengers unloaded. Alice, Jasper and Lilly spent a long time looking at the departing flights board. I could hear them discussing the pros and cons of New York, Atlanta, Chicago, Quebec, and Ontario. Places I'd never seen and would probably never see.

I waited for my opportunity, impatiently, unable to stop my toe from tapping. We sat in the long rows of chairs by the metal detectors, Jasper and Alice pretending to people watch- but really watching me- while Lilly sat with a sketch pad that she had been using a lot since we had been stuck in the hotel room. I noticed that she was a rather good artist, but what wasn't she good at these days? Every inch I shifted in my seat was followed by a quick glance out of the corner or each of their eyes. It was hopeless. Should I run? Would they dare to stop me physically in this public place? Forget about Lilly and tell James that I couldn't get her to come with me and escape at the same time? Or would they all simply follow?

I pulled the unmarked envelope out of my pocket and set it a top of Alice's black leather bag. She looked at me.

"My letter," I explained and she nodded, tucking it under the top flap. He would find it soon enough. I had told Alice that the letter was to my mother, but it was really written to Edward along with another to Jasper.

The minutes passed and Edward's arrival grew closer. It was amazing how every cell in my body seemed to know he was coming, to long for his coming. That made it very hard. I found myself trying to think of excuses to stay, to see him first and then make the escape. But I knew that was impossible if I was going to have a chance to get Lilly and myself away from them.

Several times Alice offered to go get breakfast with me. Later, I told her, not yet. I stared at the arrival board, watching as flight after flight arrived on time. The flight from Seattle crept closer to the top of the board.

And then, when I had only thirty minutes to make our escape, the numbers changed. His plane was ten minutes early. I had no more time.

"I think I'll eat now," I said quickly.

Alice stood. "I'll come with you."

"Do you mind if Lilly comes instead?" I asked.

Jasper gave me a skeptical look, but didn't say anything as Lilly stood up. Alice's eyes were confused, but – I saw to my relief- not suspicious. She must be attributing the change in her vision to some maneuver of the tracker's rather than a betrayal by me.

Lilly walked silently beside me, her arm looped through my own. I pretended a lack of interest in the first few airport cafes, my head scanning for what I really wanted. And there it was, around the corner, out of Alice's sharp sight: the level-three ladies' room.

"Do you mind?" I asked Lilly as we passed.

"No, not at all." She smiled and followed me inside.

**(Lilly's POV)**

As soon as we made it inside to where the stalls were, she turned to me with a look of determination. She reached in to her pocket and pulled out a piece of paper, and then handed it to me. I unfolded it, only looking up at her with a skeptical, confused expression, but her eyes were pleading with me, so I didn't say anything as I looked down to read the writing on the piece of paper.

_Lilly,_

_I am writing this to you instead of saying any of this out loud, because I didn't  
>want Alice to see this conversation. So please, do not say anything or ask<br>any questions until you have completed reading this._

_James called me earlier, making me pretend that I was speaking with my mom.  
>He has her. I heard her voice on the phone, calling for me in a panic.<br>He said that the only way he would let her go was if you and I came to meet him.  
>I am so sorry that I have to ask this of you, but I can't ignore this and let anything<br>happen to my mom. I understand if you refuse, but at least I will have tried._

_I have a plan that will hopefully get all of us out of this alive, but I will need  
>you to come with me and use your gift on him in order for it to work.<br>Please, I wouldn't ask this of you unless there was no other way._

_Bella_

I looked up at her with wide eyes, but I knew that I had to act fast if I agreed to go along with this. I knew that there was no way that I would let my best friend go to her death without a fighting chance, so I just nodded my head.

"Thank you," Bella said before she grabbed my hand and began to pull me to the other side of the bathroom where there appeared to be another exit to the bathroom. "Alice will have seen you make that decision and will be on to us any second now, so we have to move!"

I nodded as we ran out the door. Outside the far door it was only a short sprint to the elevators, and if Jasper and Alice just got up now, we would never be in their line of sight. We didn't look behind us as we ran. This was our only chance, and if they even saw us, we had to keep going. People stared, but we ignored them. Around the corner the elevators were waiting, and we dashed forward, throwing my hand between the closing doors of a full elevator headed down. We squeezed in beside the irritated passengers, and Bella checked to make sure that the button for level one had been pushed. It was already lit, and the doors closed.

As soon as the door opened we were off again, to the sound of annoyed murmurs behind us. We slowed ourselves as we passed the security guards by the luggage carousels, only to break into a run again as the exit doors came in to view. We had no way of knowing if Alice and Jasper were looking for us yet.

We would have only seconds if they were following our scent, or in Jasper's case, following the mating pull. We jumped out the automatic doors, nearly smacking into the glass when they opened too slowly.

Along the crowded curb there wasn't a cab in sight.

We had no time. Alice and Jasper were either about to realize that we were gone, or they already had. They would find us in a heard beat. I could already feel the mating pull begin to affect me, and if I noticed it, then Jasper did.

A shuttle to the Hyatt was just closing its doors a few feet behind us.

"Wait!" Bella called, grabbing my arm and running, waving at the driver.

"This is the shuttle to the Hyatt," the driver said in confusion as he opened the doors.

"Yes," she huffed, "that's where we're going." We hurried up the steps.

He looked askance at our luggage-less state, but then shrugged, not caring enough to ask.

Most of the seats were empty. We sat as far from the other travelers as possible, and watched out the window as first the sidewalk, and then the airport, drifted away. I couldn't help imagining Jasper where he would stand at the edge of the road when he found the end of our trail. I couldn't cry yet, I told myself. We still had a long way to go.

**(Jasper's POV)**

Something wasn't right. Alice had gotten up, saying that she just wanted to check something as her emotions showed panic and worry. She told me to remain seated and watch our things as she got up to do whatever she was doing.

I started to panic myself when I realized that I was starting to feel the mating pull, and the only way that was possible was if…

Shit!

I stood up from my seat and began looking around for Alice, only to find her walking towards me in a fast paced walk with a look of complete worry and fear.

"What is it, Alice? What's wrong? I am beginning to feel the pull!" I rushed out as she stopped in front of me.

"They're gone." She answered.

"What do you mean they're gone?" I asked gripping her upper arms as I tried to hold the Major at bay. "Where are they, Alice?"

"They went to meet James." I searched her face and emotions for any detection that she was joking or lying, no matter how cruel it would be to joke about, but I couldn't find any trace of dishonesty.

"Why would they do that?" I growled out, feeling as if I was about to collapse. "Where are they supposed to meet him? I need to get there!"

"I think they are meeting him at the ballet studio that I saw in my vision, but I see them making a stop first to Bella's mother's house. We need to wait for Edward, Emmett and Carlisle first though." She said.

"Alice, I don't know if I can do that." I sighed running a hand through my curly blond locks. "I'm having a hard time as it is trying to keep the Major at bay, but if he gets out, I can guarantee that he will not be a patient man."

It was then that my phone beeped with a text message. I pulled it out of my pocket and clicked the button to read it. It was from Peter.

'**You need to wait for the others or one of the two of them will die. Read the letter! - *All-Knowing Yoda***

"What letter?" I asked out loud before showing the text message to Alice.

"Letter…the letter!" Alice yelled as she riffled through her black leather bag for the letter that Bella had written to her mother. She ripped it open and found that there were two folded up pieces of paper as she unfolded the first one. It was a letter to Edward.

_Edward,_

_Don't be angry with Alice and Jasper. If I manage to get Lilly and I away from them it  
>will be a miracle. Tell them thank you for me. Alice especially, please.<br>I am sorry that it had to come to this, but he has my mother and will kill her unless I  
>somehow manage to escape from all of you and bring Lilly with me to meet him.<br>God only knows why he wants her, but please apologize to everyone, namely Jasper,  
>for handing Lilly over to him. Words can't even express how sorry I am.<br>I have a plan that we are going to try to put in to action if she agrees to come, so  
>I can only pray that hope is not lost and I will be able to return to you. But<br>if it fails, then know that we tried and that it was for a good cause.  
>And please, please, don't come after him. That's what he wants. The same with Jasper.<br>I can't bear it if anyone has to be hurt because of me, especially you.  
>Please, this is the only thing I can ask of you now. For me.<em>

_I love you. Forgive me.  
>Bella<em>

"He has her mother?" I asked Alice and watched as she searched through visions of the future.

"No," she shook her head. "It has to be a trick. I don't see her mother anywhere in any of these visions of him."

"Fuck!" I growled and began to pace, running my hands over my face in exasperation. "What about the other piece of paper? What does it say?" I asked.

She unfolded the paper and began to scan it, her eyes widening before she let out a long sigh. "Here, it's for you from Bella." She said as she held out the paper towards me. I took it from here and began to read.

_Jasper,_

_I know that you probably hate me by now and could care less what this letter has to say,  
>but I knew that I had to at least give you an explanation of my actions; if Lilly<br>agrees to come with me, that is.  
>He has my mother, Jasper, and he will kill her unless I can manage to get Lilly to<br>come with me to meet him. I am so sorry, from the bottom of my heart, I'm sorry.  
>I wish that I had another choice, but I don't. She is my best friend and it hurts me that<br>I even have to ask this of her and if I know her like I think I do, she won't hesitate to help.  
>I have a plan that I will be putting in to action with her help, so pray that hope is not lost.<br>But if it somehow fails and we are not able to return, then I again, I am so sorry.  
>Since she has no knowledge of any of this until we have to leave, she wouldn't<br>have had the time to write to you as I have written to Edward.  
>She would want you to know how much she loves you and how you completed her soul.<br>She would want you to know that no matter what happens to her, that she will  
>always have you in her thoughts and in her heart. She would apologize<br>for having to leave you and that it wasn't something she could avoid.  
>And lastly, she would tell you not to give in to James's plan.<br>As I told Edward, he wants you both to seek revenge so that he could  
>kill you both. Don't do it. She wouldn't want your life<br>to be forfeited in her name. _

_Again, I am so sorry. Forgive me.  
>Bella<em>

I let out a long sigh before collapsing in to a chair and putting my head in my hands. What are we going to do? What are we supposed to tell Edward when he arrives and finds that Bella and Lilly aren't here? Fuck, fuck, fuck! Please, God, let them be okay!

**(Lilly's POV)**

Our luck held. In front of the Hyatt, a tired-looking couple was getting their last suitcase out of the truck of a cab. We jumped out of the shuttle and ran to the cab, sliding into the back seats. The tired couple and the shuttle driver stared at us.

Bella told the surprised cabbie an address before saying, "We need to get there as soon as possible."

"That's in Scottsdale," he complained.

I threw four twenties over the seat.

"Will that be enough?" I growled at him impatiently to Bella's surprise.

"Sure, kid, no problem."

I sat back against the seat, pressing a hand against my heart, trying to suppress the pain from the mating bond. It was getting worse.

"Are you alright?" Bella asked in concern as she eyed my hand against my chest.

"Yeah," I nodded. "it's the mating bond." I murmured, eyeing the cabbie who was blaring Spanish music in the front seat.

"Mating bond?" She asked confused, tilting her head to the side.

I discretely explained Jasper and I's mating bond, paying mind to the driver in the front seat. She seemed very interested in what I had to say about how Jasper and I have a stronger bond than most. I also explained that since the pain it still getting worse, then they must not have left the airport yet, or they're getting ready to. She sighed at that information before turning to look out the window at the city rushing around us. I closed my eyes and spent the rest of the twenty minute ride in silence, thinking about Jasper and how we could get out of this mess without any casualties.

I was so involved in my own thoughts, that I lost track of the seconds racing by.

"Hey, what was the number?" The cabbie's question brought me back to the present.

"Fifty-eight twenty-one." Bella's voice sounded strangled. The cabbie looked back and forth between the two of us, nervous that she was having an episode or something.

I grabbed Bella's hand in mine and gave her a comforting squeeze. She replied by giving me a small smile in return before looking back out the window.

"Here we are, then." He was anxious to get us out of his car, probably hoping I wouldn't ask for my change.

"Thank you," I whispered.

The house was empty and that confused me. I looked to Bella for an explanation as she hurried to the door, reaching up automatically to grab the key under the eave.

"He left a number for us to call him on so he can tell us where to meet him, though I have a sneaking suspicion of where we will end up." She explained as she unlocked the door.

It was dark inside, empty, normal. She ran to the phone and I followed after her as I looked around. It looked exactly like the drawing that Alice sketched of the place.

Bella flicked on the light as we turned in to the kitchen. There, on the whiteboard, was a ten-digit number written in a small, neat hand. Her fingers stumbled over the keypad, making mistakes. She had to hang up and start again. She concentrated on the buttons, carefully pressing each one in turn. She was successful. She held the phone to her ear with a shaking hand. It rang only once.

"Hello, Bella," that easy voice answered. "That was very quick. I'm impressed."

"Is my mom alright?" She immediately asked.

"She's perfectly fine. Don't worry, Bella, I have no quarrel with her. Unless you and Lilly didn't come alone, of course." Light, amused.

"We're alone." I'd never been more alone in my entire life.

"Very good. Now, do you know the ballet studio just around the corner from your home?"

"Yes, I know how to get there."

"Well, then, I'll see you both very soon."

She hung up and began to head to the door.

"Wait, wait, Bella!" I stopped her as I grabbed on to her elbow. "What's the plan?"

She sighed and began to switch her weight from foot to foot. "Your gift; If you can manage to get him to look at you, then you can use your gift on him and have him release my mom before you keep him frozen in place so that we can kill him or have him kill himself."

I nodded to myself, knowing that it would work. "Ok, let's go." I said before we ran from the room, through the door, out into the baking heat.

**A/N:**** So what did you think? Read and review! Next up will be the confrontation with James! Any guesses on what is going to happen? Remember, it's not the same as the book!**

**If you have any questions or comments, post them in my reviews and I will answer them in my next Author's Note! **

**Check out my other stories!**

'Attempting to Covet'  
>'Dhampir'<br>'Far Fetched Realities'  
>'Mirror Image'<br>'Other Worldly Beauty'  
>'Perplexing Revelations'<br>'Pretexting'  
>'The Heart's Desire'<span>** NEW!  
><strong>'The Major'  
>'Twilight ReVAMPed'<span>

**If you enjoyed this story so far, check out some of my other stories on my FanFiction page! Also, I am still accepting Twilight stories that involve Jasper/any female leads or Bella/selected male leads if anyone is looking for a Beta Reader. I will make exceptions on the characters depending on the plot. I am also now excepting Phantom of the Opera FanFictions that include Erik! PM me for details!  
><strong>_- Bella'Xo  
><em>**Xo BellaItalia oX**


	31. Chapter 28

**Disclaimer. ****All publicly recognizable characters, settings etc., are the property of their respective owners. The original characters, ideas and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended. I only do this for fun. –B**

**Chapter 28  
><strong>**(Jasper's POV)**

Something was wrong.  
>I could feel it in my gut.<br>Not only that, but the mating pull was beginning to burn in my chest. I looked over in Alice's direction as I got ready to question her only to find her in a vision. Her emotions were radiating panic and fear.

I waited impatiently for her to come out of her vision and moments later, she snapped out of it and immediately turned to me with wide eyes.

"They're gone."

"Gone? Where did they go? Why? What did you see?" I rushed out.

"The ballet studio." She whispered out as she covered her mouth with her hand.

I jumped up ready to follow the pull to this ballet studio but before I could make it three steps, Alice stood and grabbed my arm.

"No, Jasper…you can't go after them yet. We need to wait for Edward, Emmett and Carlisle to get here or the girls will be as good as dead." She stressed.

I took in a deep shaky breath and balled up my fists as I locked up my legs to keep me from running. I slowly began to nod my head.

"Good." Alice sighed and patted the arm that she was holding and dragged me to sit down. I leaned forward and put my head in my hands as I bounced my leg impatiently. The pain in my chest continued to increase the further away from me that she got.

I knew that Lilly could take care of herself and Bella, but Lilly hasn't perfected her gift yet, nor has she had nearly enough fight training to go against a seasoned vampire and win. Lilith is the only one that knows how to use every aspect of it and her fighting is good, but could be better. Not only that, but she doesn't know how to willingly let Lilith gain control without a serious trigger. This only worried me more.

God, please let them be alright…

**(Bella's POV)**

There was no time to look back at my house, and I didn't want to see it as it was now – empty, a symbol of fear instead of sanctuary. The last person to walk through those familiar rooms was my enemy. From the corner of my eye, I could see my mother standing in the shade of the big eucalyptus tree where I'd played as a child. Or kneeling by the little plot of dirt around the mailbox, the cemetery of all the flowers she'd tried to grow and failed. The memories were better than any reality I would see today. But Lilly and I raced away from them, toward the corner, leaving everything behind us.

I felt so slow, like I was running through wet sand – I couldn't seem to get enough purchase from the concrete. I tripped several times, once falling, Lilly catching me under my arm and steadying me on my feet before plunging forward again. I knew that Lil was straining to keep herself going at my pace rather than speeding down the empty street at vampire speed.

At last we made it to the corner. Just another street now; we ran, sweat pouring down my face, gasping while Lilly kept up her steady pace without a problem. It was twilight, Edward's favorite time of day, but even then it was still hot. I smiled to myself at the thought of him even though the guilt for leaving him was weighing heavily on my shoulders. More fiercely that I would have dreamed I was capable of, I wished for the green, protective forests of Forks…of home.

When we rounded the last corner, onto Cactus, I could see the studio, looking just as I remembered it. The parking lot in front was empty, the vertical blinds in all the windows drawn. I couldn't run anymore – I couldn't breathe; exertion and fear had gotten the best of me. I thought of my mother to keep my feet moving, one in front of the other.

As we got closer, I could see the sign inside the door. It was handwritten on hot pink paper; it said that the dance studio was closed for spring break. I paused with my hand on the handle and took a deep breath. I felt Lilly's slightly cooler hand on my shoulder. I always noticed that her skin temperature was cooler than mine, but warmer than the Cullen's. I looked up at her and saw her looking at me with a mix of concern and reassurance.

"Everything will be okay, Bella. I won't let anything happen to you or your mom. I promise." She murmured.

I gave her a weak smile and pulled her in for a hug. She obviously knew what I was trying to do, because there was no way that I would be able to make her move on my own.

She pulled back with a soft smile and nodded. "Let's go."

I touched the handle and tugged on it cautiously. It was unlocked. I fought to catch my breath, and opened the door.

**(Lilly's POV)**

The lobby was dark and empty, but no problem for my enhanced eye sight. It was cool and the air conditioner was thrumming. The plastic molded chairs were stacked along the walls, and the carpet smelled like shampoo. The dance floor on the west was dark and even though I could see through the viewing window in to the dark room, I knew that Bella couldn't. The dance floor to the east, the bigger room, was lit. But the blinds were closed on the window.

Bella gripped my hand as soon as she took in the light coming from the east dance room and she seized up by obvious terror. It seemed that she couldn't make her feet move forward.

And then her mother's voice called.

"Bella? Bella?" In a tone of hysterical panic.

She ripped her hand from mine and sprinted to the door to the sound of her voice. I followed a little ways behind her and looked around the room for James at the same time. I could smell him, but oddly enough, I couldn't smell the human scent of Bella's mother or hear another heart beat other than mine or Bella's.

"Bella, you scared me! Don't you ever do that to me again!" Her voice continued as we ran into the long high-ceilinged room.

Bella stared around herself, trying to find the where her mother's voice was coming from. We heard her laugh and whirled around to the sound.

"There!" I exclaimed and pointed to a dark wood armoire where her voice was coming from. We ran up to it and Bella ripped open the double doors, only to reveal a small TV screen with Bella and her mother as she tousled her hair in relief.

"It was Thanksgiving and I was twelve." Bella explained with her eyes transfixed on the screen. "We'd gone to see my grandmother in California, the last year before she died. We went to the beach one day, and I'd leaned too far over the edge of the pier." I watched it happen on the TV as she went on. "She'd seen my feet flailing, trying to reclaim my balance. She called out to me and brought back from over the edge just in time before I fell over."

And then the TV screen was blue and I could smell his scent stronger now.

We turned slowly. He was standing very still by the back exit. In his hand was a remote control. We all stared at each other for a long moment, and then he smiled.

He walked toward us, quite close, and then passed us to put the remote down next to the VCR. I turned carefully to watch him and Bella with most of my attention on James.

"Sorry about that, Isabella, but isn't it better that your mother didn't really have to be involved in all this?" His voice was courteous, kind.

And suddenly it seemed to hit both of us at the same time. I could tell by the reaction in Bella's eyes. Her mother was safe. She was still in Florida. She'd never gotten her message that she left for her the other day. She'd never been terrified by the dark red eyes in the terrifying man before us. She was safe.

"Yes," Bella answered, her voice saturated with relief.

"You don't sound angry that I tricked you in to meeting me; that I tricked you in to delivering yourself and Lillian."

"I'm not." She answered, lifting her chin in the air defiantly.

"Neither am I." I added. After all, what did it matter now? I would rather have everyone as far away from this mess as possible.

"How odd. You both really mean it." His dark eyes assessed her with hunger and then turned on to me with interest. The irises were nearly black, just a hint of ruby around the edges; thirsty and lustful. "I will give your strange coven this much, you humans can be quite interesting. I guess I can see the draw of observing you. It's amazing – some of you seem to have no sense of your own self-interest at all."

He was standing a few feet away from us, arms folded, looking at Bella curiously and then turning his attention back to me again.

"But you, my dear Lillian, _you_ are truly unique." He smirked. "A vampire that is part human." He paused and looked me up and down. "And the power you radiate. I can almost taste it." His eyes flashed in an almost startling manner.

"What do you mean 'I radiate power?" I asked confused and tilting my head slightly to the side.

James chuckled and continued to slowly pace in front of us. "There are many forms of tracking. Most track a creature using their scent or disturbances in the land. Others have a gift." He paused taking our reactions in. "Demetri of the Volturi is one example of a gifted tracker. All he has to do is see you or smell you and then think of you to find out where you are anywhere in the world. Others have extra senses that allow the tracker to follow an almost visible trail based on the scent that they are tracking. Me, on the other hand…I may not be as gifted as Demetri when it comes to tracking…but I do have certain quirks that come with my gift."

"What quirks?" I pressed.

He leveled a gaze at me and gave me a sardonic smile. "I happen to track a subject it is all through scent. But if I happen to get a full look at my target, I acquire bits of knowledge about them that would help me track them through their scent that way. For example, when I target a vampire, I will pick up on their dietary habits, preferable climates, hunting ranges and so on. Humans are a little different. I will receive their address, favorite spots, favorite foods…"

Bella and I exchanged glances before looking back at James questioningly.

"How did I know what our beautiful Lillian is when I never have seen anything like her? Or that her diet is a mix of criminal humans and a mix of animals, but prefers carnivores? As for Isabella, it is odd for me and a first that I can't seem to get anything from her scent. So I had to do some research on her part and picked up a few useful tid-bits that helped Victoria and I track you. I knew that you both went to Forks High School and that is how I got your old address here in Phoenix, Isabella." He chuckled.

There was no menace in his face or stance. He was so very average-looking, nothing remarkable about his face or body at all. Just the white skin, the circled eyes I'd grown used to. He wore a pale blue, long-sleeved shirt and faded blue jeans.

"I suppose you're going to tell me that your boyfriend will avenge you?" he asked Bella, hopefully it seemed to me.

"No, I don't think so. At least, I asked him not to." She murmured as strong as she could, but I could still detect the fear in her voice.

His eyebrows shot up. "And what was his reply to that?"

"I don't know." She shrugged. "I left him a letter."

"How romantic, a last letter. And do you think he will honor it?" His voice was just a little harder now, a hint of sarcasm marring his polite tone.

"I hope so."

"Hmmm. Well, our hopes differ then. You see, this was all just a little too easy, too quick. To be quite honest, I'm disappointed. I expected a much greater challenge with you." He sighed. "Well, at least I still have high hopes regarding your Major, Lillian." He eyed me out of the corner of his eye as he said my name. "Anyway, when Victoria couldn't get to your father, Bella, I had her find out more about you as to find out where you had disappeared to after that cleaver Houdini act with your scent. There was no sense in running all over the planet chasing you down when I could comfortably wait for you in a place of my choosing. So, after I talked to Victoria and put together what she told me with what I already knew about you, I decided to come here to Phoenix to pay your mother a visit. When I scoped out Lillian's house, imagine my surprise when I discovered that the two of you live across the street from each other. You were arguing with your father at that point and I'd heard you say you were going home. At first, I never dreamed you meant it. But then I wondered. Humans can be very predictable; they like to be somewhere familiar, somewhere safe. And wouldn't it be the perfect ploy, to go to the last place you should be when you're hiding – the place that you said you'd be, and to do it with Lillian no less!

"But of course, I wasn't sure, it was just a hunch. I usually get a feeling about the prey I'm hunting about their destination, a sixth sense, if you will. I listened to your message when I got to your mother's house, but of course I couldn't be sure where you'd called from. It was very useful to have your number, but you could have been in Antarctica for all I knew, and the game wouldn't work unless you were close by.

"Then your boyfriend got on a plane to Phoenix. Victoria was monitoring them for me, naturally; in a game with this many players, I couldn't be working alone. And so they told me what I'd hoped, that you were here after all. I was prepared; I'd already been through your charming home movies. And then it was simply a matter of the bluff.

"As for you Lillian, consider yourself lucky that your parents haven't been home and from the strength of the scents in your home, it is clear that they haven't been home in weeks.

"But even with that, it was very easy, you know, not really up to my standards. Everything that led me here, I got through research on Isabella. So, you see, I'm hoping you're wrong about your boyfriend, Edward, isn't it?"

She didn't answer and it was then that he turned his attention towards me.

"How about you, Lillian? Did you write a last letter to your Major? You won't have the chance to do that again, so I hope it gave him incentive to come after you. I always dreamed of challenging the great Major of the South to a fight to the death!"

"No, I didn't know until it was too late that I was going to be leaving with Bella." I answered and smiled at the brief look of disappointment that appeared on his face before it was gone.

"No matter," he sighed, "knowing what I do about him from others and what I picked up through his scent, I know that he is the type that will stop at nothing until he gets you back." He smirked. "But that's not going to happen. You are going to be mine."

"I will never be yours!" I growled. "I have a mate and I will never submit to you that way!"

"Don't you already have a mate in Victoria?" Bella pressed before he could respond to my objection.

"Very good young Swan." James praised her. "She is my mate, but I want more. I will still have Victoria, but I will have you, Lillian, as well."

"Why me?" I questioned.

"You will find out in good time, my dear." He said. "All in good time."

I could tell that the bravado was wearing off. I sensed that he was coming to the end of his gloat. It wasn't meant for us anyway.

"Would you mind, very much, if I left a little letter of my own for your Major and Edward?"

He took a step back and touched a palm-sized digital video camera balanced carefully on top of the stereo. A small red light indicated that it was already running. He adjusted it a few times, widening the frame. Bella stared at him in horror and me in alarm.

"I'm sorry, but I just don't think he'll be able to resist hunting me after he watches this. And I wouldn't want him or your Major to miss anything. It was all for them, of course. You, Isabella, are simply a weak human, who unfortunately was in the wrong place, at the wrong time, and indisputably running with the wrong crowd, I might add. Though you are a fine prize, Lillian, and will serve me well with my purposes, but the Major had wronged me one too many times in the past and it would be my privilege to be the one to end his existence. What a way to get to him more than to have you submit to me on tape." He paused and zoomed the camera in for a close up on my face. "Do you know how I plan to do that?" I shook my head, even though I had a feeling that I knew. "I will first defile you and then give you a master's mark."

My eyes widened in horror at the thought of a master's mark. Jasper had told me all about them. He used to distribute them to some of the more disruptive newborns when he was with Maria. If you mark a vampire on the back of their neck on the spine and pump your venom in to them, they will have no choice but to submit to you. The more venom you inject, the stronger and longer the master's mark works. It will eventually wear off, but by then the vampire that marked you will have done it again.

He stepped toward Bella, smiling. "Before we begin…"

I felt a curl of nausea in the pit of my stomach as he spoke. None of this was anything that I had anticipated, but it was not the right time to use my gift on him.

"I would just like to rub it in, just a little bit. The answer was there all along, and I was so afraid Edward would see that and ruin my fun. It happened once, oh, ages ago. The one and only time my prey escaped me.

"You see, the vampire who was so stupidly fond of this little victim made the choice that your Edward was too weak to make.

"When the old one knew I was after his little friend, he stole her from the asylum where he worked – I will never understand the obsession some vampires seem to form with you humans – and as soon as he freed her he made her safe. She didn't even seem to notice the pain, poor little creature. She'd been stuck in that black hole of a cell for so long. A hundred years earlier and she would have been burned at the stake for her visions. In the nineteen-twenties it was the asylum and the shock treatments. When she opened her eyes, strong with her fresh youth, it was like she'd never seen the sun before. The old vampire made her a strong new vampire, and there was no reason for me to touch her then." He sighed. "I destroyed the old on in vengeance."

"Alice," I breathed, astonished and Bella gasped out loud and covered her mouth with her hand.

He nodded thoughtfully. "Yes, your little friend. I was surprised to see her in the clearing. So I guess her coven ought to derive some comfort from this experience. I get the both of you, and they get her. The one victim who escaped me, quite an honor, actually. And she did smell so delicious. I still regret that I never got to taste…She smelled even better than you do, Isabella. Sorry – I don't mean to be offensive. You have a very nice smell. Floral, somehow…"

He took another step toward Bella, till he was just inches away. He lifted a lock of her hair and sniffed at it delicately. Then he gently patted the strand back into place, and he put his fingertips against her throat. He reached up to stroke her cheek once quickly with his thumb, his face curious. It was clear that she wanted to run, but was frozen. She didn't even flinch.

"No," he murmured to himself as he dropped his hand, "I don't understand." He sighed. "Well, I suppose we should get on with it. And then I can call your friends and tell them where to find you, and my little message to the Major and young Edward."

This was it…it was now or never.

I pushed my gift to work and instructed him to back away from her, but to my shock and horror…it didn't work!

"Lilly…" Bella pleaded.

"I can't! It's not working!" I panicked. There was no way that I was strong enough to take him on my own.

He started to laugh a deep sadistic chuckle and shook his head.

"Do you think me a fool? I knew all about your special talent, Lillian! Call it another perk from my tracking gift. I can pick up on a person's gift and how it works!"

"B-but, how?" I stuttered.

"I think it is time I introduce you to someone…" He smirked as we heard footsteps approach the door the connected the studio that we were in with the dark studio next door.

**A/N:**** Dun Dun Dunnn! Cliff Hanger! Who do you think it is and why isn't Lilly's gift working? What is going to happen next? Any guesses? Remember, it's not the same as the book!**

**If you have any questions or comments, post them in my reviews and I will answer them in my next Author's Note! **

**Check out my other stories!**

'Attempting to Covet'  
>'Dhampir'<br>'Far Fetched Realities'  
>'Mirror Image'<br>'Other Worldly Beauty'  
>'Perplexing Revelations'<br>'Pretexting'  
>'The Heart's Desire'<span>** NEW!  
><strong>'The Major'  
>'Twilight ReVAMPed'<span>

**If you enjoyed this story so far, check out some of my other stories on my FanFiction page! Also, I am still accepting Twilight stories that involve Jasper/any female leads or Bella/selected male leads if anyone is looking for a Beta Reader. I will make exceptions on the characters depending on the plot. I am also now accepting Phantom of the Opera FanFictions that include Erik! I will also be accepting Titanic FanFictions featuring Jack, and Law and Order SVU that feature Elliot. PM me for details!  
><strong>_- Bella'Xo  
><em>**Xo BellaItalia oX**


	32. Chapter 29

**Disclaimer. ****All publicly recognizable characters, settings etc., are the property of their respective owners. The original characters, ideas and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended. I only do this for fun. –B**

**Chapter 29  
><strong>**(Lilly's POV)**

The connecting door opened and I was startled to realize that the other vampire that was about to enter didn't have a scent. No wonder I didn't know that anyone else was here. They must have been standing against the wall near the observation window where I couldn't see anyone.

The footsteps continued and in walked another male vampire. He looked to be in his late twenties with dark black curly hair that was cut short and gelled back. He was wearing a navy 'V' cut t-shirt and black jeans that were worn at the knees. His boots were what looked like a knock off version of black timberlands and were creased at the toes and worn. His crimson eyes were piercing and he stood with a stance of dominance.

"Isabella, Lillian, may I introduce you to my sire, Gillian Sánchez." James introduced us proudly with an amused smirk on his face.

Gillian approached us with his arms crossed over his chest as he studied us. His stopped in front of me and leveled a gaze at me.

"So, you are the mate of the God of War, are you not?" He asked in a monotone. I didn't answer. "Humph, I'll take that as a 'yes' then." He paused. "Also, you will learn to speak when you are addressed."

He slowly began to circle me as he looked me up and down. I stayed as still as I could, even though my entire being was forcing myself to fidget under his scrutiny. He stopped when he returned to his starting position in front of me.

"Beautiful…" He murmured as he lightly brushed my hair back behind my ear. I kept myself frozen as to not flinch or react in disgust to his touch. "You did very well, James." Gillian praised him without taking his eyes off of my face.

James began to object rather loudly and strongly. "Wait a minute, you said that I could have her if-"

"I said that you could have the human!" Gillian raised his voice. "I allowed you your mate when she was in my army and I spared both of your lives when the Major and his army came down on us. You will not argue with me on this, are we clear?"

"Yes sir." James gritted out unhappily.

"It will be my master's bite that will grace your neck and me who will defile you." He said softly as he stroked my cheek. The nauseous feelings increased and I fought to keep my stance and to summon Lilith. I couldn't seem to find the right trigger though and I balled my fists at my sides.

"Now, as I was saying before I introduced you to my sire, we were getting ready to talk to you about your gift. I am no fool and I picked up on your gift when we were out in the field. I knew then that I could not go in to this alone. I knew how my sire wanted to get his revenge on your Major and knew that he would take great delight in playing this game. He was only too eager to accept." James explained.

"But what does that have to do with Lilly's gift?" Bella asked.

Gillian smirked and began to slowly pace as he answered. "A little over a half of a century ago, my life was perfect. I had my mate, Alondra, by my side and the largest army in the southern wars. We owned the largest territory for about two decades before we went after Monterey. It was there we met the Major and his mistress, Maria, for the first time."

He paused and looked to take in Bella and my expressions.

"I have a gift. It is nothing all that special, but it comes in handy if we do our homework." He began. "If a vampire has a gift, I can put a shield around them to make their gift temporarily not work. I can only do it to one vampire at a time and it's not the kind of shield that can protect the person from any other gifts, but if we sent a spy to the other army camps and learn about their gifts, when we go to battle I can block that gifted vampire from using their gift."

"But what did Jasper do to you that you are taking this out on me?" I asked in confusion. I knew that there had to be more to this.

"HE KILLED MY ALDONDRA!" Gillian roared before he took several deep breaths composing himself. "I had every intention of repaying the favor and killing you, but once I heard James's speech about the master's bite and thought why kill his mate when I can just take his mate for my own?"

"I'll never be yours." I growled out at him.

He chuckled. "We will see about that, won't we?" He turned to look at James. "Get on with this." He gripped me by my arm and tugged me in to the corner. I struggled against his grip, but it was too strong.

James nodded as this was happening and smiled and then began to circle, casually with the video camera still recording as if he were trying to get a better view of a statue in a museum. His face was still open and friendly with a malicious undertone as he decided where to start.

Then he slumped forward, into a crouch I recognized, and his pleasant smile slowly widened, grew, till it wasn't a smile at all but a contortion of teeth, exposed and glistening.

**(Bella's POV)**

I couldn't help myself – I tried to run. As useless as I knew it would be, as weak as my knees already were, panic took over and I bolted for the emergency door. I knew that I couldn't leave Lilly to them, but I knew that they wouldn't kill her and at least from everything I heard, I could help the Cullen's get her back. I felt like I had no choice.

He was in front of me in a flash. I didn't see if he used his hand or his foot, it was too fast. A crushing blow struck my chest and I heard Lilly scream out my name in panic. I felt myself flying backward, and then heard the crunch as my head bashed into the mirrors. The glass buckled, some of the pieces shattering and splintering on the floor beside me.

I was too stunned to feel the pain. I couldn't breathe yet.

He walked toward me slowly.

"That's a very nice effect," he said, examining the mess of glass, his voice friendly again. "I thought this room would be visually dramatic for me little film. That's why I picked this place to meet you. It's perfect, don't you think? What about you, Lillian?"

As he tilted the camera up towards Lilly and Gillian, I scrambled on my hands and knees, crawling toward the other door.

He was over me at once, his foot stepping down hard on my leg. I heard the sickening snap before I felt it as Lilly screamed again and I could see her out of the corner of my eye wrestling to get away from Gillian, but he had too good of a grip. When I did feel the pain, I couldn't hold back my scream of agony. I twisted up to reach for my leg, and he was standing over me, smiling.

"Would you like to rethink your last request?" he asked pleasantly. His toe nudged my broken leg and I heard a piercing scream. With a shock, I realized it was mine.

"Wouldn't you rather have Edward try to find me?" he prompted.

"No!" I croaked. "No, Edward, don't-" And then something smashed into my face, throwing me back into the broken mirrors.

Over the pain of my leg, I felt the sharp rip across my scalp where the glass cut into it. And then the warm wetness began to spread through my hair with alarming speed. I could feel it soaking the shoulder of my shirt, hearing it dripping on the wood below. The smell of it twisted my stomach.

Through the nausea and dizziness I saw something that gave me a sudden, final shred of hope. His eyes, merely intent before, now burned with an uncontrollable need. The blood – spreading crimson across my white shirt, pooling rapidly on the floor – was driving him mad with thirst. No matter his original intentions, he couldn't draw this out much longer.

Let it be quick now, was all I could hope as the flow of blood from my head sucked my consciousness away with it. My eyes were closing.

I heard, as if from underwater, the final growl of the hunter. I could see, through the long tunnels my eyes had become, his dark shape coming toward me. With my last effort, my hand instinctively raised to protect my face. My eyes closed, and I drifted.

And as I drifted, I dreamed.

Where I floated, under the dark water, I heard the happiest sound my mind could come up with – as beautiful, as uplifting, as it was ghastly. It was another snarl: a deeper, wider roar that rang with fury.

**(Lilly's POV)**

The door that Bella and I entered the studio from burst in to pieces as Edward rammed through it and slammed in to James. He flew across the room and hit the wall, momentarily dazing him. Jasper followed seconds after and stopped about ten feet in front of us.

"Gillian," he growled as Gillian tightened his hold on me.

"Hello Major," He greeted him.

"This is it…let her go!" From the way that he spoke and the look in his face and eyes, I knew that this was the Major that we were dealing with.

"You're right." He agreed. "I am no fool and I know what my chances are for the moment."

He rearranged his hold on me and leaned forward to whisper in my ear so that no one else could hear.

"But don't worry, my little flower, I will be back to pick you out of your little garden sooner than you think." He whispered and kissed my neck before shoving me so hard in to the Major that we both flew across the room. The Major landed on his back and I landed on top of him.

We both jumped up and turned only to find Gillian gone.

"Don't worry, I'll go after him!" Emmett said as he jumped down off of the balcony type loft with Carlisle and Alice.

"Don't bother!" The Major ordered as he began to check me over for injuries.

"What, why?" Emmett asked perplexed.

"He doesn't have a scent. He's long gone." I answered for him.

I heard a scream and turned full of panic.

"Bella!" I whispered as I saw Bella on the floor next to Alice bleeding brokenly, but before I could run over to her side, the Major grabbed my wrist and pulled me in to his chest.

"No!" He growled.

"Major, I have to help her! Go help Emmett with James." I suggested before I kissed him chastely on the lips. He looked in to my eyes, searching for something. He must have found it, because he nodded and flitted over to Emmett who was standing behind James with both of his arms in a locked grip behind him.

By the time I made it to Bella's side, Alice had gone to help finish off James and start a fire while Edward and Carlisle were by her side.

"Bella!" Edward cried as he took her hand in his.

"She's lost some blood, but the head wound isn't deep," Carlisle informed us in a calm voice. "Watch out for her leg, it's broken."

A howl of rage strangled on Edward's lips.

"Some ribs, too, I think." I added as I remembered what I saw James do to her.

"Ed-ww-ard…" Bella struggled out through her teeth.

"Bella, you're going to be fine. Can you hear me, Bella? I love you."

"I'm so sorry, Edward. I tried to help her, but Gillian has a gift that wouldn't allow me to use my gift and I couldn't get away from him! He wouldn't let me go! I tried!" I rushed out.

"No, I know…I saw it in your mind when I approached the building. It's not your fault." He said, not taking his eyes off of Bella as Carlisle worked on her leg.

I nodded, but didn't say anything else as I followed Carlisle's instructions to stop the bleeding on her leg.

"Edward," Bella moaned again. This time, her voice was a little clearer.

"Yes, I'm here."

"It hurts," she whimpered.

"I know, Bella, I know" – and then, in an anguished voice he asked "can't you do anything?"

"My bag, please…Hold your breath, Alice, it will help," Carlisle promised as she brought his bag over and sat next to Carlisle.

"Alice?" Bella groaned.

"She's here, she knew where to find out." Edward assured her.

"My hand hurts," She complained brokenly.

"I know, Bella. Carlisle will give you something, it will stop."

"My hand is burning!" She screamed, her eyes fluttering open. I began to check her hand closest to me for any injuries.

Edward's voice was frightened. "Bella?"

"The fire! Someone stop the fire!" She screamed as I finally spotted the problem on the hand that Edward was holding.

"Carlisle! Her hand!" I pointed out, bringing their attention to the bite.

"He bit her." Carlisle's voice was no longer calm, it was appalled.

I heard Edward catch his breath in horror.

"Edward, you have to do it." Alice insisted as she brushed her fingers at the wetness in Bella's eyes.

"No!" he bellowed.

"Alice," Bella moaned. "Lilly…"

"I'm here, Bella, I'm fine. You're going to be fine." I reassured her as I rubbed her upper arm letting her know where I was.

"There may be a chance," Carlisle said.

"What?" Edward begged.

"See if you can suck the venom back out. The wound is fairly clean." As Carlisle spoke, he poked and prodded at Bella's head as to check the cut she had gotten when James threw her in to the wall.

"Will that work?" Emmett asked as he and Jasper approached us, Emmett holding his breath.

"I don't know," Carlisle said as Jasper squatted behind me and pulled me in to his arms and then buried his face in my hair and growled possessively before licking away the scent on my neck where Gillian had kissed me. It was clear to me that Jasper was running on instinct now that James was dead. I could smell the purple smoke that filled the room and see the flames beginning to grow in the corner of the studio.

"Carlisle, I…" Edward hesitated. "I don't know if I can do that." There was agony in his voice again.

"It's your decision, Edward, either way. I can't help you. I have to get this bleeding stopped here if you're going to be taking blood from her hand." He explained as he moved back to her leg and added more pressure.

"Whatever you do, you better do it quick before the fire attracts attention from the humans." I pressed him as Bella withed in the grip of the fiery torture that she was going through.

"Edward!" She screamed.

Her eyes flew open again and she looked around seemingly despite to find his face. Her eyes finally landed on him staring back at her, his face twisted into a mask of indecision and pain.

"Alice, get me something to brace her leg!" Carlisle instructed before turning his attention back to Edward. "Edward, you must do it now, or it will be too late."

Edward's face was drawn. I watched his eyes and the doubt was suddenly replaced with a blazing determination. His jaw tightened. He locked his fingers on her burning hand and then his head bent over, and his lips pressed against her skin.

Slowly, her writhing calmed and her consciousness slipped.

"Edward," She tried to say.

"He's right here, Bella." I comforted her as I kept my eyes on Edward and Jasper gripped me tighter in his arms nuzzling my neck.

"Stay, Edward, stay with me…"

"I will." Edward answered after he finally wretched his lips from Bella's wrist. His voice was strained, but somehow triumphant. I have to admit, I was very proud of him. I don't know anyone else who could do that with their singer.

Bella sighed contentedly.

"Is it all out?" Carlisle asked as he looked up at Edward.

"He blood tastes clean," Edward said quietly. "I can taste the morphine."

"Bella?" Carlisle called to her.

She tried to answer. "Mmmmmm?"

"Is the fire gone?"

"Yes," she sighed. "Thank you, Edward."

"I love you." He answered.

"I know," she breathed and Edward quietly laughed, weak with relief.

"Bella?" Carlisle asked again.

She frowned. "What?"

"Where is your mother?"

"In Florida," she sighed.

Everyone looked at me in confusion and looking for answers.

"He tricked her." I grumbled.

"He watched our videos." The outrage in Bella's voice was pitifully frail.

Everyone nodded their understanding as Bella tried to open her eyes again. "Alice, the video – he knew you, Alice, he knew where you came from."

"What?" She looked up at me shocked and urgently.

I sighed and nodded to the video camera that was still recording on the floor a few feet away from us. "Watch it. He knew who you were when you were human and how you got changed."

Emmett walked over and picked up the camera, shutting if off and flipping the screen closed and holding on it.

"We will have to watch that later to see what we can find out about Gillian." Jasper spoke up for the first time since before he and Emmett killed James.

"I smell gasoline," Bella mumbled out of the blue.

"It's time to move her," Carlisle said.

"No, I want to sleep." Bella complained.

"You can sleep, sweetheart, I'll carry you," Edward soothed her as he picked her up and cradled her against his chest.

We all rose and followed after them with me tucked against Jasper's side. Edward leaned down and kissed her temple. "Sleep now, Bella."

"Are you sure you're alright, Lilly?" Jasper asked as he pulled me to a stop in front of the car.

"I'm positive." I smiled as I reached up and cupped his face. "I'm perfect now that I am back in your arms, _mon amour._" **(my love)** He returned my sentiment with a small smile and pressed a hard kiss to my lips.

"And don't think that we aren't going to talk about this later." He warned and I nodded, knowing that he wasn't going to just let this slide. "Don't ever do that to me again."

"I won't, I promise." I murmured as I cuddled further into his embrace.

**A/N:**** So, what did you think? Don't worry, we still have a few more chapters to go before the end and then I will be starting on the sequel! I would love to hear your thoughts, so review!**

**Also, if you have any questions at this point in the story, feel free to post them in my reviews and I will answer them in my next Author's Note!**

**Check out my other stories!**

'Attempting to Covet'  
>'Dhampir'<br>'Far Fetched Realities'  
>'Mirror Image'<br>'Other Worldly Beauty'  
>'Perplexing Revelations'<br>'Pretexting'  
>'The Heart's Desire'<span>** NEW!  
><strong>'The Major'  
>'Twilight ReVAMPed'<span>

**If you enjoyed this story so far, check out some of my other stories on my FanFiction page! Also, I am still accepting Twilight stories that involve Jasper/any female leads or Bella/selected male leads if anyone is looking for a Beta Reader. I will make exceptions on the characters depending on the plot. I am also now accepting Phantom of the Opera FanFictions that include Erik! I will also be accepting Titanic FanFictions featuring Jack, and Law and Order SVU that feature Elliot. PM me for details!  
><strong>_- Bella'Xo  
><em>**Xo BellaItalia oX**


	33. Chapter 30

**Disclaimer. ****All publicly recognizable characters, settings etc., are the property of their respective owners. The original characters, ideas and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended. I only do this for fun. –B**

**Chapter 30  
><strong>**(Bella's POV)**

My eyes opened to a bright, white light. I was in an unfamiliar room, a white room. The wall beside me was covered in long vertical blinds; over my head, the glaring lights blinded me. I was propped up on a hard, uneven bed – a bed with rails. The pillows were flat and lumpy. There was an annoying beeping sound somewhere close by. I hoped that meant I was still alive. Death shouldn't be this comfortable.

My hands were all twisted up with clear tubes, and something was taped across my face, under my nose. I lifted my hand to rip it off.

"No, you don't." And cool fingers caught my hand.

"Edward?" I turned my head slightly, and his exquisite face was just inches from mine, his chin resting on the edge of my pillow. I realized again that I was alive, this time with gratitude and elation. "Oh, Edward, I'm so sorry!"

"Shhhh," he shushed me. "Everything's all right now."

"What happened?" I couldn't remember clearly, and my mind rebelled against me as I tried to recall.

"I was almost too late. I could have been too late," he whispered, his voice tormented. "I could have lost both you and Lilly."

_Lilly..._

Panic welled up inside of me and worry about my friend was rising.

"Lilly? Is she okay? Where is she?" I rambled out trying to sit up as the beeping of my heart monitor began to speed up.

"Shhhh, calm down, love." He cooed and placed his cold hands on my shoulders and pushed me back in to the bed against the pillow. "Lilly is fine. She is back at the hotel with Jasper. He can't be around you in your condition, but he won't let Lilly out of his arms. They just left here maybe an hour or so ago. They just went to get changed in to a new set of clothes. Not to mention, if the nurses or your parents see that the lot of us are here constantly without sleeping or eating, it could raise suspicions. But don't worry, they should be back any minute."

"I was so stupid, Edward. I thought he had my mom. Jasper must hate me now for putting Lilly in such danger."

"He tricked us all. And don't worry, Jasper doesn't hate you." He tried to reassure me. "His thoughts about you only show that he hopes that you will be okay and that you get better soon."

"But still…I should apologize to him and Lilly."

"Let's worry about getting you better first." He gave me a small smile and tucked a piece of hair behind my ear affectionately.

"I need to call Charlie and my mom," I realized through the haze.

"Alice called her and Lilly called Charlie. Renée is here – well, here in the hospital. She's getting something to eat right now."

"She's here?" I tried to sit up again, but the spinning in my head accelerated, and his hand pushed me gently down onto the pillows again. I glared at him, but he just gave me another one of his crooked smiles as he dazzled me.

"She'll be back soon," he promised. "And you need to stay still."

"But what did you tell her?" I panicked. I had no interest in being soothed. My mom was here and I was recovering from a vampire attack. "Why did you tell her I'm here?"

"You fell down two flights of stairs and through a window." He paused. "You have to admit, it could happen."

I sighed, and it hurt. I stared down at my body under the sheet, the huge lump that was my leg.

"How bad am I?" I asked.

"You have a broken leg, four broken ribs, some cracks in your skull, bruises covering every inch of your skin, and you've lost a lot of blood. They gave you a few transfusions. I didn't like it – it made you smell all wrong for a while." He said making a face. "It was the only time that Jasper could manage to come near you with Lilly's assistance."

"That must have been a nice change for you." I attempted to joke.

"No, I like how you smell."

"How did you do it?" I asked quietly. He knew what I meant at once.

"I'm not sure." He looked away from my wondering eyes, lifting my gauze-wrapped hand from the bed and holding it gently in his, careful not to disrupt the wire connecting me to one of the monitors.

I waited patiently for the rest.

He sighed without returning my gaze. "It was impossible… to stop," he whispered. "Impossible, but I did." He looked up finally, with half a smile. "I must love you."

"Don't I taste as good as I smell?" I smiled in response. That hurt my face.

"Even better – better than I'd imagined."

"I'm sorry," I apologized.

He raised his eyes to the ceiling. "Of all the things to apologize for."

"What should I apologize for?"

"For nearly taking yourself away from me forever."

"I'm sorry," I apologized again.

"I know why you did it." His voice was comforting. "It was still irrational, of course. You should have waited for me, you should have told me."

"You wouldn't have let me go."

"No," he agreed in a grim tone, "I wouldn't. And neither would Jasper. Lilly has been getting the same lectures. He thinks that she should have told him immediately and convinced you in whatever way she had to that it was best to wait for the rest of us to come up with a plan. He isn't a fan of impulse decisions, but will use them when he has to. That's his military upbringing for you."

I gave him a small smile before I was bombarded with some very unpleasant memories that were beginning to come back to me. I shuddered, and then winced.

He was instantly anxious. "Bella, what's wrong?"

"What happened to James and Gillian?"

"A few seconds after I arrived, Jasper followed suite. He stopped in front of Gillian who was holding Lilly as a shield. He knew that there was no way out for him, so he threw Lilly at Jasper hard and knocked them down and across the room. By the time they were on their feet, Gillian was gone and with no scent to follow, we didn't know where he went; he vanished."

He paused and shook his head before continuing.

"After I pulled James off you the final time during out fight, Emmett and Jasper took care of him." There was a fierce note of regret in his voice.

This confused me. "I didn't see Emmett or Jasper there."

"No, you wouldn't have. Emmett and Jasper were near the fire on the other end of the room making sure that all of the body parts were burnt and by the time the approached, the morphine was well in to your system and combined with the amount of blood you lost…you were really out of it."

"How was Jasper able to be around me then, but not now?"

"At the time, he was holding his breath and wasn't concerned about anything or anyone but Lilly. Once James was destroyed, he was running completely on instinct and his instinct at the time was telling him to protect Lilly and to keep her with him. He wouldn't have been able to focus on anything but her. By the time he was lucid enough to realize what was happening, we were moving you."

"Oh," I nodded absentmindedly. "Who else was there?"

"Alice and Carlisle."

A flash of painful images from the last time I'd seen Alice reminded me of something. "Did Alice see the tape?" I asked anxiously.

"Yes." A new sound darkened in his voice, a tone of sheer hatred. "They watched it a few days ago, hence why Jasper hasn't been able to leave Lilly even after all this time, because their connection is stronger than a normal mated pair. After watching it… well, it took some time for her to calm him down. Lilly didn't want Jasper to see it, but Alice asked that they be there with her while she watched it and Lilly knew that this would be hard for Alice and would need all the support that she could get from those closest to her. I got a re-run of it through their thoughts."

"She was always in the dark, that's why she didn't remember."

"I know. She understands now." His voice was even, but his face was black with fury.

I tried to reach his face with my free hand, but something stopped me. I glanced down to see the IV pulling at my hand.

"Ugh." I winced.

"What is it?" he asked anxiously – distracted, but not enough. The bleakness did not entirely leave his eyes.

"Needles," I explained, looking away from the one in my hand. I concentrated on a warped ceiling tile and tried to breathe deeply despite the ache in my ribs.

"Afraid of a needle," he muttered to himself under his breath, shaking his head. "Oh, a sadistic vampire, intent on torturing her to death, sure, no problem, she runs off with her best friend to meet him. An IV, on the other hand…"

I rolled my eyes. I was pleased to discover that this reaction, at least, was pain-free. I decided to change the subject.

"Why are you here?" I asked.

He stared at me, first confusion and then hurt touching his eyes. His brows pulled together as he frowned. "Do you want me to leave?"

"No!" I protested, horrified by the thought. "No, I meant, why does my mother think you're here? I need to have my story straight before she gets back."

"Oh," he said, and his forehead smoothed back into marble. "I came to Phoenix with Carlisle, Alice and Jasper when they came to pick Lilly up, because she drove with you to make sure you got here safely. I wanted to talk some sense in to you, to convince you to come back to Forks with us." His wide eyes were so earnest and sincere, I almost believed him myself. "You agreed to see me when you dropped Lilly off, and you drove out to the hotel where I was staying, but you tripped on the stairs on the way to my room and… well, you know the rest. You don't need to remember any details, though; you have a good excuse to be a little muddled about the finer points."

I thought about it for a moment. "There are a few flaws with that story. Like no broken windows."

"Not really," he said. "Alice had a little bit too much fun fabricating evidence. It's all been taken care of very convincingly – you could probably sue the hotel if you wanted to. You have nothing to worry about," he promised, stroking my cheek with the lightest of touches. "Your only job now is to heal."

I wasn't so lost to the soreness or the fog of medication that I didn't respond to his touch. The beeping of the monitor from earlier jumped around erratically again – now he wasn't the only one who could hear my heart misbehave.

"That's going to be so embarrassing," I mutter to myself.

He chuckled, and a speculative look came into his eye. "Hmmm, I wonder…"

He leaned in slowly; the beeping noise accelerated wildly before his lips even touched me. But when they did, though with the most gentle of pressure, the beeping stopped all together.

He pulled back abruptly, his anxious expression turning to relief as the monitor reported the restarting of my heart.

"It seems that I'm going to have to be even more careful with you than usual." He frowned.

"I was not finished kissing you," I complained. "Don't make me come over there."

He grinned and bent to press his lips lightly to mine. The monitor went wild. But then his lips were taut. He pulled away.

"I think I hear your mother," he said, grinning again.

"Don't leave me," I cried, an irrational surge of panic flooding through me. I couldn't let him go – he might disappear from me again.

He read the terror in my eyes for a short second. "I won't," he promised solemnly, and then he smiled. "I'll take a nap."

He moved from the plastic chair by my side to the turquoise faux-leather recliner at the foot of my bed, leaning it all the way back, and closing his eyes. He was perfectly still.

"Don't forget to breathe," I whispered sarcastically.

He took a deep breath, his eyes still closed.

I could hear my mother now. She was talking to someone, maybe a nurse, and she sounded tired and upset. I wanted to jump out of the bed and run to her, to calm her, promise that everything was fine. But I wasn't in any sort of shape for jumping, so I waited impatiently.

The door opened a crack and she peeked through.

"Mom!" I whispered, my voice full of love and relief.

She took in Edward's still form on the recliner and tiptoed to my bedside.

"He never leaves, does he?" she mumbled to herself.

"Mom, I'm so glad to see you!"

She bent down to hug me gently, and I felt warm tears falling on my cheeks.

"Bella, I was so upset!"

"I'm sorry, Mom. But everything's fine now, it's okay," I comforted her.

"I'm just glad to finally see your eyes open." She sat on the edge of my bed.

I suddenly realized I didn't have any idea when it was. "How long have they been closed?"

"It's Friday, hon, you've been out for a while."

"Friday?" I was shocked. I tried to remember what day it had been when…but I didn't want to think about that.

"They had to keep you sedated for a while, honey – you've got a lot of injuries."

"I know." I could feel them.

"You're lucky Dr. Cullen was there. He's such a nice man… very young, though. And he looks more like a model than a doctor…"

"You met Carlisle?"

"And I also finally met your best friend Lilly. She's such a lovely girl. Very beautiful, as well."

"She is," I agreed whole heartedly.

"Her boyfriend Jasper, Edward's brother," she paused uncertainly as she looked for confirmation. I nodded and she continued, "he was with her when I met her. Very clingy, that one, but it was obvious that Lilly didn't mind in the least. Not that I would either. He is very charming and amazingly handsome for someone his age. It is clear very clear that they are head over heels for each other."

I held in a laugh as I nodded.

"And I also met Edward's sister, Alice. She's very sweet and quite the energy ball, isn't she?"

I grinned as I continued to nod.

She glanced over her shoulder at Edward, lying with his eyes closed in the chair. "Aside from Lilly, you didn't tell me you had such good friends in Forks."

I cringed, and then moaned.

"What hurts?" she demanded anxiously, turning back to me. Edward's eyes flashed to my face.

"It's fine," I assured them. "I just have to remember not to move." He lapsed back into his phony slumber.

I took advantage of my mother's momentary distraction to keep the subject from returning to my less-than-candid behavior. "Where's Phil?" I asked quickly.

"Florida – oh, Bella! You'll never guess! Just when we were about to leave, the best news!"

"Phil got signed?" I guessed.

"Yes! How did you guess? The Suns, can you believe it?"

"That's great, Mom," I said as enthusiastically as I could manage, though I had little idea what that meant.

"And you'll like Jacksonville so much," she gushed while I stared at her vacantly. "I was a little bit worried when Phil started talking about Akron, what with the snow and everything, because you know how I hate the cold, but now Jacksonville! It's always sunny, and the humidity really isn't that bad. We found the cutest house, yellow, with white trim, and a porch just like in an old movie, and this huge oak tree, and it's just a few minutes from the ocean, and you'll have your own bathroom – "

"Wait, Mom!" I interrupted. Edward still had his eyes closed, but he looked too tense to pass as asleep. "What are you talking about? I'm not going to Florida. I live in Forks."

"But you don't have to anymore, silly." She laughed.

"Phil will be able to be around so much more now… we've talked about it a lot, and what I'm going to do is trade off on the away games, half the time with you, half the time with him."

"Mom," I hesitated, wondering how best to be diplomatic about this. "I want to live in Forks. I'm already settled in at school, and I have Lilly, along with a couple of girlfriends" – she glanced toward Edward again when I reminded her or friends, so I tried another direction – "and Charlie needs me. He's just all alone up there, and he can't cook at all."

"You want to stay in Forks?" she asked bewildered. The idea was inconceivable to her. And then her eyes flickered back toward Edward. "Why?"

"I told you – Lilly, friends, school, Charlie – ouch!" I shrugged. Not a good idea.

Her hands fluttered helplessly over me, trying to find a safe place to pat. She made do with my forehead; it was un-bandaged.

"Bella, honey, you hate Forks," she reminded me.

"It's not so bad."

She frowned and looked back and forth between Edward and me, this time very deliberately.

"Is it this boy?" she whispered.

I opened my mouth to lie, but her eyes were scrutinizing my face, and I knew she would see through that.

"He's part of it," I admitted. No need to confess how big a part. "So, have you had a chance to talk with Edward?" I asked.

"Yes." She hesitated, looking at his perfectly still form. "And I want to talk to you about that."

Uh-oh. "What about?" I asked.

"I think that boy is in love with you." She accused, keeping her voice low.

"I think so, too," I confided as a blush filled my cheeks.

"And how do you feel about him?" She only poorly concealed the raging curiosity in her voice.

I sighed, looking away. As much as I loved my mom, this was not a conversation I wanted to have with her. "I'm pretty crazy about him." There - that sounded like something a teenager with her first boyfriend might say.

"Well, he seems very nice, and my goodness, he's incredibly good-looking like the rest of his family is, but you're so young, Bella…" Her voice was unsure; as far as I could remember, this was the first time since I was eight that she'd come close to trying to sound like a parental authority. I recognized the reasonable-but-firm tone of voice from talks I'd had with her about men.

"I know that, Mom. Don't worry about it. It's just a crush." I soother her with a lie.

Then she sighed and glanced guiltily over her shoulder at the big, round clock on the wall.

"Do you need to go?"

She bit her lip. "Phil's supposed to call in a little while… I didn't know you were going to wake up… "

"No problem, Mom." I tried to tone down the relief so she wouldn't get her feelings hurt. "I won't be alone."

"I'll be back soon. I've been sleeping here, you know?" she announced, proud of herself.

"Oh, Mom, you don't have to do that! You can sleep at home – I'll never notice." The swirl of painkillers in my brain was making it hard to concentrate even now, though, apparently, I'd been sleeping for days.

"I was too nervous," she admitted sheepishly. "There's been some crime in the neighborhood, and I don't like being there alone."

"Crime?" I asked in alarm.

"Someone broke into that dance studio around the corner from the house and burned it to the ground – there's nothing left at all! And they left a stolen car right out front. Do you remember when you used to dance there, honey?"

"I remember." I shivered, and winced.

"I can stay, baby, if you need me."

"No, Mom, I'll be fine. Edward will be with me, and I'm sure Lilly and the rest of Edward's family that is here will be dropping in and out too."

She looked like that might be why she wanted to stay when she heard me mention Edward. "I'll be back tonight." It sounded as much like a warning as it sounded like a promise, and she glanced at Edward again as she said it.

"I love you, Mom."

"I love you, too, Bella. Try to be more careful when you walk, honey, I don't want to lose you."

Edward's eyes stayed closed, but a wide grin flashed across his face. I was highly tempted to throw my pillow at him.

A nurse came bustling in then to check all my tubes and wires. My mother kissed my forehead, patted my gauze-wrapped head and left.

The nurse was checking the paper readout on my heart monitor.

"Are you feeling anxious, honey? Your heart rate got a little high there."

"I'm fine," I assured her as I tried to bite the inside of my cheek to keep myself from smiling.

"I'll tell your RN that you're awake. She'll be in to see you in a minute."

As soon as she closed the door, Edward was at my side.

"You stole a car?" I raised my eyebrows.

"Emmett did before he left to head back to Forks. Rose was missing him." He then smiled unrepentant. "It was a good car, very fast."

"How was your nap?" I asked.

"Interesting." His eyes narrowed.

"What?"

He looked down while he answered. "I'm surprised. I thought Florida… and your mother… well, I thought that's what you would want."

I stared at him uncomprehendingly. "But you'd be stuck inside all day in Florida. You'd only be able to come out at night, just like a real vampire."

He almost smiled, but not quite. And then his face was grave. "I would stay in Forks, Bella. Or somewhere like it." He explained. "Someplace where I couldn't hurt you anymore."

It didn't sink in at first.

I continued to stare at him blankly as the words one by one clicked into place in my head like a ghastly puzzle. I was barely conscious of the sound of my heart accelerating, though, as my breathing became hyperventilation, I was aware of the sharp aching in my protesting ribs.

He didn't say anything; he watched my face warily as the pain that had nothing to do with broken bones, pain that was infinitely worse, threatened to crush me.

And then another nurse walked in purposefully into the room. Edward sat still as stone as she took in my expression with a practiced eye before turning to the monitors.

"Time for more pain meds, sweetheart?" she asked kindly, tapping the IV feed.

"No, no," I mumbled, trying to keep the agony out of my voice. "I don't need anything." I couldn't afford to close my eyes now.

"No need to be brave, honey. It's better if you don't get too stressed out; you need to rest." She waited, but I just shook my head.

"Okay," she sighed. "Hit the all button when you're ready."

She gave Edward a stern look, and threw one more anxious glance at the machinery, before leaving.

His cool hands were on my face; I stared at him with wild eyes.

"Shhh, Bella, calm down."

"Don't leave me," I begged in a broken voice.

"I won't," he promised. "Now relax before I call the nurse back to sedate you."

But my heart couldn't slow.

"Bella." He stroked my face anxiously. "I'm not going anywhere. I'll be right here as long as you need me."

"Do you swear you won't leave me?" I whispered. I tried to control the gasping, at least. My ribs were throbbing.

He put his hands on either side of my face and brought his face close to mine. His eyes were wide and serious. "I swear."

The smell of his breath was soothing. It seemed to ease the ache of my breathing. He continued to hold my gaze while my body slowly relaxed and the beeping returned to a normal pace. His eyes were dark, closer to black than gold today.

"Better?" he asked.

"Yes," I said cautiously.

He shook his head and muttered something unintelligible. I thought I picked out the word 'overreaction.'

"Why did you say that?" I whispered, trying to keep my voice from shaking. "Are you tired of having to save me all the time? Do you want me to go away?"

"No, I don't want to be without you, Bella, of course not. Be rational. And I have no problem with saving you, either – if it weren't for the fact that I was the one putting you in danger… that I'm the reason that you're here."

"Yes, you are the reason." I frowned. "The reason I'm here – alive."

"Barely." His voice was just a whisper. "Covered in gauze and plaster and hardly able to move."

"I wasn't referring to my most recent near-death experience," I said, growing irritated. "I was thinking of the others – you can take your pick. If it weren't for you, I'd be rotting away in the Forks cemetery."

He winced at my words, but the haunted look didn't leave his eyes.

"That's not the worst part, though," he continued to whisper. He acted as if I hadn't spoken. "Not seeing you there on the floor…crumpled and broken." His voice was choked. "Not thinking I was too late. Not even hearing you scream in pain – all those unbearable memories that I'll carry with me for the rest of eternity. No, the very worst was feeling…knowing that I couldn't stop. Believing that I was going to be the one to kill you myself."

"But you didn't."

"I could have. So easily."

I knew I needed to stay calm… but he was trying to talk himself into leaving me, and the panic fluttered in my lungs, trying to get out.

"I thought that mates couldn't leave each other?" I whispered out.

"When the mates are both vampires they can't or in cases like Lilly and Jasper's it's even worse than that. But our situation isn't so…binding. I proved that when I left after the first time I met you when I went to Alaska." He paused as he took in my reaction and waited for me to object. When I didn't he continued. "You can have that chance at a normal human life without me there to constantly put your life at risk. I love you enough to want that for you no matter how much of me wants to be selfish." He argued.

"I don't care. I'll risk it." I shook my head as I spoke.

"You shouldn't have to." I murmured.

"Promise me," I whispered.

"What?"

"You know what." I was starting to get angry now. He was so stubbornly determined to dwell on the negative.

He heard the change in my tone. His eyes tightened. "I don't seem to be strong enough to stay away from you; so I suppose that you'll get your way… whether it kills you or not," he added roughly.

"Good." He hadn't promised, though – a fact that I had not missed. The panic was only barely contained; I had no strength left to control the anger. "You told me how you stopped…now I want to know why," I demanded.

"Why?" he repeated warily.

"Why you did it. Why you didn't just let the venom spread. By now I would be just like you."

Edward's eyes seemed to turn flat black, and I remembered that this was something he'd never intended me to know. Jasper and Lilly must have been too immersed in each other to even weigh that conversation as important enough to slip through their minds since the fight and Alice must have been preoccupied by the things she'd learned about herself… or she'd been very careful with her thoughts around him – clearly, he'd had no idea that she'd filled me in on the mechanics of vampire conversions. He was surprised and infuriated. His nostrils flared, his mouth looked as if it was chiseled from stone.

He folded his arms on the side of my bed and rested his chin on his arms. His expression was smooth, the anger reined in. Evidently he'd decided he wasn't angry with me. I hoped I'd get a chance to warn Alice and the others before he caught up with them.

"You have saved me," he said quietly.

"I can't always be Lois Lane," I insisted. "I want to be Superman, too."

"You don't know what you're asking." His voice was soft; he stared intently at the edge of the pillowcase.

"I think I do."

"Bella, you don't know. I've had almost ninety years to think about this, and I'm still not sure."

"Do you wish that Carlisle hadn't saved you?"

"No, I don't wish that." He paused before continuing. "But my life was over. I wasn't giving anything up."

"You are my life. You're the only thing it would hurt me to lose." I was getting better at this. It was easy to admit how much I needed him.

He was very calm, though. Decided.

"I can't do it, Bella. I won't do that to you."

"Why not?" My throat rasped and the words weren't as loud as I'd meant them to be. "Don't tell me it's too hard! After today, or I guess it was a few days ago… anyway, after that, it should be nothing!"

He glared at me.

"And the pain?" he asked.

I blanched. I couldn't help it. But I tried to keep my expression from showing how clearly I remembered the feeling… the fire in my veins.

"That's my problem," I said. "I can handle it."

"It's possible to take bravery to the point where it becomes insanity."

"It's not an issue! Three days. Big deal."

Edward grimaced again as my words reminded him that I was more informed than he had ever intended me to be. I didn't understand why he was so adamant on me not knowing. I watched him repress that anger, watched as his eyes grew speculative.

"Charlie?" he asked curtly. "Renée?"

"Lilly was able to keep both her parents in her life!" I pressed on.

"Lilly was adopted by John and Anne! You don't know her full story and until you do, don't use Lilly as your answer for everything!" He growled and I looked at him in surprise. I had no idea that John and Anne weren't Lilly's biological parents. I wonder why she didn't tell me. I knew that I had yet to learn her story, but still…I thought that she would have at least told me that?

Minutes passed in silence as I struggled to answer his question. I opened my mouth, but no sound came out. I closed it again. He waited, and his expression became triumphant because he knew I had no true answer.

"Look, that's not an issue either," I finally muttered; my voice was unconvincing as it always was when I lied. "Renée has always made the choices that work for her – she'd want me to do the same. And Charlie's resilient; he's used to being on his own. I can't take care of them forever. I have my own life to live."

"Exactly," he snapped. "And I won't end it for you."

"If you're waiting for me to be on my deathbed, I've got news for you! I was just there!"

"You're going to recover," he reminded me.

I took a deep breath to calm myself, ignoring the spasm of pain it triggered. I stared at him, and he stared back. There was to compromise in his face.

"No," I said slowly. "I'm not."

His forehead creased. "Of course you are. You may have a scar or two…"

"You're wrong," I insisted. "I'm going to die."

"Really, Bella?" He was anxious now. "You'll be out of here in a few days. Two weeks at most."

I glared at him. "I may not die now… but I'm going to die sometime. Every minute of the day, I get closer. And I'm going to get old."

He frowned as what I was saying sunk in, pressing his long fingers to his temples and closing his eyes. "That's how it's supposed to happen. How it should happen. How it would have happened if I didn't exist – and I shouldn't exist."

I snorted. He opened his eyes in surprise. "That's stupid. That's like going to someone who's just won the lottery, taking their money, and saying, 'Look, let's just go back to how things should be. It's better that way.' And I'm not buying it."

"I'm hardly a lottery prize," he growled.

"That's right. You're much better."

He rolled his eyes and set his lips "Bella, we're not having this discussion anymore. I refuse to damn you to an eternity of night and that's the end of it."

"If you think that's the end of it, then you don't know me very well," I warned him. "You're not the only vampire I know."

His eyes went black again. "Alice wouldn't dare and there is no way that Jasper would let Lilly do it."

And for a moment, he looked so frightening that I couldn't help but believe it – I couldn't imagine someone brave enough to cross him.

"Alice already saw it, didn't she?" I guessed. "That's why the things she says upset you. She knows I'm going to be like you…someday."

"She's wrong." He shook his head in denial. "She also saw you dead, but that didn't happen, either."

"You'll never catch me betting against Alice."

We stared at each other for a very long time. It was quiet for the whirring of the machines, the beeping, the dripping, the ticking of the big clock on the wall. Finally, his expression softened.

"So where does that leave us?" I wondered/

He chuckled humorlessly. "I believe it's called an impasse."

I sighed. "Ouch," I muttered.

"How are you feeling?" he asked, eyeing the button for the nurse.

"I'm fine." I lied.

"I don't believe you," he said gently.

"I'm not going back to sleep."

"You need rest. All this arguing isn't good for you."

"So give in," I hinted.

"Nice try." He reached for the button.

"No!"

He ignored me.

"Yes?" the speaker on the wall squawked.

"I think we're ready for more pain medication," he said calmly, ignoring my furious expression.

"I'll send in the nurse." The voice sounded very bored.

"I won't take it." I promised.

He looked toward the sack of fluids hanging beside my bed. "I don't think they're going to ask you to swallow anything."

My heart rate started to climb. He read the fear in my eyes and sighed in frustration.

"Bella, you're in pain. You need to relax so you can heal. Why are you being so difficult? They're not going to put any more needles in you now."

"I'm not afraid of the needles," I mumbled. "I'm afraid to close my eyes."

Then he smiled his crooked smile, and took my face between his hands. "I told you I'm not going anywhere. Don't be afraid. As long as it makes you happy, I'll be here."

I smiled back, ignoring the ache in my cheeks. "You're talking about forever, you know."

"Oh, you'll get over it – it's just a crush."

I shook my head in disbelief – it made me dizzy. "I was shocked when Renée swallowed that one. I know you better."

"That's the beautiful thing about being human," he told me. "Things change."

My eyes narrowed. "Don't hold your breath."

He was laughing when the nurse came in, brandishing a syringe.

"Excuse me," she said brusquely to Edward.

He got up and crossed to the end of the small room, leaning against the wall. He folded his arms and waited. I kept my eyes on him, still apprehensive. He met my gaze calmly.

"Here you go, honey." The nurse smiled as she injected the medicine into my tub. "You'll feel better now."

"Thanks," I mumbled, unenthusiastic. It didn't take long. I could feel the drowsiness trickling through my bloodstream almost immediately.

"That ought to do it," she muttered as my eyelids drooped.

She must have left the room, because something cold and smooth touched my face.

"Stay." The word was slurred.

"I will," he promised. His voice was beautiful, like a lullaby. "Like I said, as long as it makes you happy…as long as it's what's best for you."

I tried to shake my head, but it was too heavy. "'S not the same thing," I mumbled.

He laughed. "Don't worry about that now, Bella. You can argue with me when you wake up."

I think I smiled. "Kay."

I could feel his lips at my ear.

"I love you," he whispered.

"Me, too."

"I know," he laughed quietly.

I turned my head slightly… searching. He knew what I was after. His lips touched mine gently.

"Thanks," I sighed.

"Anytime."

I wasn't really there at all anymore. But I fought against the stupor weakly. There was just one more thing I wanted to tell him.

"Edward?" I struggled to pronounce his name clearly.

"Yes?"

"I'm betting on Alice," I mumbled.

And then the night closed over me.

**A/N:**** I know it's long, but it had to be done. I had to have this chapter featuring Bella and Edward. It's an important chapter that allows the other chapters in future sequels make sense. What did you guys think? Read and Review!**

**Up Next:**_Lilly and Jasper's POV's while Bella is in the hospital and Edward's confrontation with them about Alice telling Bella about how humans are changed. Then, if there is time at the end, Lilly, Jasper and Alice visit Bella at the hospital._

**Guest:**** So I have a question, but I am not trying to be rude. Why is the James' sire's name Gillian? Did you also realize that it rhymes with Lillian? Other than that, I love your fanfic. Ive read a whole lot and yours is one of my top 5 favorites! Please update soon!**

_LOL, until you pointed the Gillian Lillian thing out to me, it had slipped my notice. I usually call her Lilly, unless it is the Major or one of the bad guys who don't shorten names calls her by Lillian. There is no reason why I chose the name Gillian, it just came in to my mind and I thought that it sounded right for a bad guy. Thanks so much for your support and I am glad that you like my story! Keep reading! – Bella'Xo_

**Lily Ann Cullen:**** This story is amazing! When will you be updating again? Can you recommend any good Jasper/OC or Jasper/Bella stories?**

_Thanks for your praises of my story! I don't have an exact day to day schedule of when I update, but the Dhampir series is the story that I work on the most. So it won't be too long. As for any recommendations, look at my fav stories. The majority of them are exactly what you're looking for. There are over 1,000 J/B or J/OC stories saved on there. He's my favorite Twilight character in case you couldn't tell by my stories! Keep reading! – Bella'Xo_

**Also, if you have anyone has any more questions at this point in the story, feel free to post them in my reviews and I will answer them in my next Author's Note!**

**Check out my other stories!**

'Attempting to Covet'  
>'Dhampir'<br>'Far Fetched Realities'  
>'Mirror Image'<br>'Other Worldly Beauty'  
>'Perplexing Revelations'<br>'Pretexting'  
>'The Heart's Desire'<span>** NEW!  
><strong>'The Major'  
>'Twilight ReVAMPed'<span>

**If you enjoyed this story so far, check out some of my other stories on my FanFiction page! Also, I am still accepting Twilight stories that involve Jasper/any female leads or Bella/selected male leads if anyone is looking for a Beta Reader. I will make exceptions on the characters depending on the plot. I am also now accepting Phantom of the Opera FanFictions that include Erik! I will also be accepting Titanic FanFictions featuring Jack, and Law and Order SVU that feature Elliot. PM me for details!  
><strong>_- Bella'Xo  
><em>**Xo BellaItalia oX**


	34. Chapter 31

**Disclaimer. ****All publicly recognizable characters, settings etc., are the property of their respective owners. The original characters, ideas and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended. I only do this for fun. –B**

**Chapter 31  
><strong>**(Jasper's POV)**

It's been five days since the fight with James and Gillian and I have barely let Lilly out of my arms and definitely out of my sight since that god awful night. That was too close for comfort and if I didn't get there when I did, than Lilly would have been gone and under Gillian's control. God only knows what that sadistic prick would have inflicted on her, especially with the master's bite. I, myself, am quite familiar with that technique and have branded many newborns during the Southern Wars. Not to mention, I have had the master's bite used as punishment on myself once or twice by Maria.

No matter how hard I try, I can't get the images of that video out of my head ever since Alice had us sit down and watch it. I nearly destroyed our hotel room afterwards until Lilly managed to get me in to the bedroom for some rough dominating sex initiated by the Major. There was nothing but desert land around Phoenix, so it was the only way that I could work out my aggressions since there were no trees for me to up root and destroy. I marked her again and again that day and didn't stop claiming her for two days straight.

I can still remember our conversation while we were lying in bed together after fucking her on every surface and wall of the bedroom. By the time we were done, the pillows were nothing but a pile of feathers and the sheets were torn to shreds. The headboard was missing chunks and the box spring was missing all of its legs. There were multiple holes in the wall and some in the shape of Lilly's body. The entertainment center was on its side and the dressers were shifted in to the wall. She had her head on my chest over my silent heart as she lye on top of me. I could feel every thump of her heart, making me feel like mine was beating all over again. It was my favorite sound in the world.

_**Flashback…**_

"_Why is Gillian so intent of revenge against you?" Lilly murmured as she drew patterns on my chest with her small, delicate fingers, causing me to shiver every time she ran over a certain spot._

_I sighed, knowing that this question was bound to come up sooner or later. "It's a long story." I breathed out as I prepared myself to go back to the time when I was Maria's puppet._

"_Tell me?" She pressed as she looked up at me with innocent, curious eyes. I knew that I could never deny her anything._

"_Gillian Sánchez used to be a warlord, like Maria, back in the 1920's. He was in charge of the largest territory in the south with the largest army in the south. He was known to be the most sadistic and merciless of the warlords, but he trained his army well. His mate was named Aldondra, and she always fought by his side. They were a great team, can her gift complimented his perfectly. She had the power to double another's gift, meaning that when Gillian threw his shield over someone, she could double it so that he could cover two people, or double it in size. It also gave his shield a physical nature instead of just mental, so whoever was stuck inside of his shield could not escape. Most of the time, they would shield the warlord and his or her most gifted soldier. That way the soldier could not use their gift and the warlord could not escape."_

"_What did they do with them after the battle was over?" Lilly asked absentmindedly as she continued to doodle on my chest._

"_They would kill the warlord and keep their heads to plant on steaks around their camp as a symbol of power and a warning to all those who would try to go against him. It was the worst kind of torture, because the head will still live on without its body. Can you imagine living as only a head to be displayed by your enemy for the rest of forever? That's one of the reasons why they always say to burn every piece of the vampire you kill, because the pieces will live on even if they are not together." I explained._

"_Is it possible to put the head on another body?" _

"_If that body is a vampire of the same gender, age, and race then yes. But it's not a common practice, as it is very difficult and takes weeks for the cells to become attached to a foreign body. Not to mention, if you wait too long to do it, the vampire will go insane and would have to be put down anyway." I answered as I remembered Maria experimenting with this method on some of her more gifted newborns that were destroyed in battle and wanted to resurrect. _

"_Oh," She nodded. "What about the gifted vampire? What did they do with them?"_

"_They would give the gifted vampire a master's bite and keep them to fight on his behalf. The vampire would have no choice but to obey the wishes of their master. Even though in their mind they don't want to, their body will react because of the bite."_

"_So, what happened with you and Gillian?"_

"_It was 1927 and Maria had her eye on Gillian's territory. She was a very patient woman, so she prepared long and hard before attacking. We would send spy's to Gillian's camp as to learn their battle plans and techniques so that we could learn how to defeat them. We would then make our own plans to counter-act their attacks and to find out which vampires needed to be taken out first. They were usually the gifted ones with a master's bite, but some Gillian had made on his own. We would know exactly how their gift worked and how to get around it. _

"_By then, Gillian had heard about Maria and myself and he made it his mission to make me the crown jewel of his collection of gifted vampires. It's almost like what Aro does, but to a different extent. Aro will use Chelsea to manipulate the bonds of the vampire he desired and Gillian would use a master's bite._

"_When we discovered this news, we knew that we had to come up with a plan. Without me commanding the troops, there was no way that we would win against Gillian's army; even after all of the new vampires we created. My gift was essential to controlling the newborns during training and battle. _

"_There was a gifted newborn amongst the army named Catalina. She had a gift to clone, but it wasn't fully developed yet. She could only clone one, maybe two vampires at a time if she was well fed. She was only 4 months old at the time at 14 in human years. She was not a very good fighter in the field either and the only reason that she had made it as far as she did was because my captain at the time, Sven, had a fancy for her after discovering that they were mated. He would always watch out for her and protect her during battle. I didn't learn of this until much later, because Maria didn't allow mated pairs among her ranks and he knew how to keep it a secret. Catalina would clone him and while his clone would watch the newborns, he would be off somewhere with her. _

"_Anyway, we decided that Catalina would clone me before the battle and hide with Maria and me in the woods. That way I could still control the newborns while they think that they have me trapped in Gillian's shield, at which point I would sneak around them and kill him and his mate while the army took down the rest of the army. We figured that without Gillian or Aldondra alive, those with their master bites would be freed and would become new ranks in our army." _

_I paused at took a long unneeded breath in. _

"_The plan went off without a hitch and before I knew it I was coming up on Gillian and Aldondra. She must have smelled me before she saw me because she suddenly turned around and sprang at me. Once Gillian saw this, he became momentarily stunned and confused because as he looked back and forth from my clone to I, he hesitated. That was something that I always drilled in to my soldiers not to do, because during that moment of hesitation, I had his mate in pieces on the ground with my lighter in my hand. He became enraged and before I could burn her, we started to fight. _

"_I kept getting the upper hand and he kept finding new ways to slither out of my holds. Before we knew it, the battle was over and the gifted ones that we wanted to keep were in pieces ready for transport. Gillian knew that if he stayed, his chances of surviving were slim to none, so like the coward he is, he fled, leaving Aldondra in pieces at my feet._

"_Maria congratulated me on my victory and rewarded me with lots of blood and sex."_

_Lilly growled under her breath at hearing this, so I sent her my love and devotion as I pulled her tighter against me. I ran my fingers through her hair as I continued with my story._

"_I decided that it was in our best interest in bringing Aldondra's pieces with us with the rest of the gifted ones and Maria agreed that it would be a wonderful prize for me to defile the mate of our fallen enemy." _

_Lilly looked up at me but I kept my eyes on the ceiling, not bearing to look at her expression as I hurried to finish the story. _

"_I know that I was a horrible monster back then. I was at one of the worst points of my life during that time, not that it is any excuse for my actions. This happened about a year after I let Peter and Char escape and I wasn't me during those years that it took Peter to come back for me." _

_I let out a long breath of air and shut my eyes for a few moments before I continued. _

"_After putting her together, I ravaged her many times. She was a bitch of a woman that had done terrible things to many others, so I felt no remorse for my actions at the time. She was what we called 'the spoils of war' along with Gillian's territory and gifted members. Once I was finished with her, she was passed around to the other newborns as a sex slave. She was a reward that Maria would give out to those newborns that deserved it. A few months later, she was killed by a jealous newborn woman because the male that she claimed as her temporary companion was rewarded with her. Maria punished her with dismemberment._

"_After I escaped Maria, I ran into Gillian in the North. It was a few weeks after I left Peter and Char and I was weak from not feeding._ _The emotions of my victims were really getting to me at that point in my life. __He warned me that he would get me back for what happened to Aldondra, but death was too good for me. He warned me that he would get me back for what happened to Aldondra, but death was too good for me. He wanted me to suffer first. After that, he disappeared without a trace and I haven't seen or heard from him since. Until the other night, that is."_

_It was quiet for some time as Lilly took in everything that I had told her. I only prayed that she wouldn't hold my past sins against me._

"_I'm sorry that you had to go through all that." She murmured. "I understand how everything happened and why you did it, and I'm sorry for it." She looked up at me with glassy eyes. "But no matter what you tell me about your past, it will never cause me to stop loving you. Nothing could."_

_Without another word, I pulled her up higher so that she was level with my face and slammed my lips against hers as I sent her all of my love, pride, acceptance, and awe that I felt in that moment. It was in that kiss that we began another round of mind blowing love making for the next 16 hours._

…_**End Flashback**_

We were now at the hotel room as we finished getting dressed before we went back to the hospital. Edward had called Lilly's phone not long ago, saying that Bella had woken up and would want to see her after she wakes up from her nap. He sounded agitated and when she asked why, he only said that Alice was going to get it before hanging up. We had looked at each other, knowing exactly what it was about before directing our attention to a sheepish looking Alice who was flipping through a fashion magazine.

I shook my head in humor before I pulled Lilly in to my arms and running my face in her hair as I chuckled quietly.

**(Lilly's POV)**

We arrived back at the hospital a little after 3 o'clock and took our seats in the waiting lounge. The news was playing quietly on the television as they spoke about a recent string of robberies throughout the west side of the city.

Jasper had his arms around me, as per usual these following days and Alice sat a few seats over as she continued flipping through the same magazine that she was looking at earlier at the hotel.

Bella's mom, Renée, gave me a smile before returning to her cell phone as she texted her husband, Phil, while standing near the entryway to the waiting area and leaning against the wall.

Minutes passed before I smelled and heard Carlisle and Edward walking down the hall towards us.

As they entered, Edward's eyes immediately sought out Alice and seeing this, Carlisle cleared his throat, getting Renée's attention. She flipped her cell phone shut before looking up expectantly at Carlisle in almost a dream-like daze. It was clear from the looks that she kept giving him that she desired him, but being a married woman, she would not do anything about it.

"Renée, why don't you go and sit with Bella. I'm sure that she would appreciate someone there just in case she wakes up from her nap." He suggested kindly.

"Oh, of course!" She nodded erratically and she picked up her purse and small overnight bag and made her way quickly to Bella's room.

Edward continued to look heatedly at Alice, who completely ignored him as she continued to read. Finally, after about 45 seconds of silence and glaring, Alice slammed the magazine closed at looked up at Edward in annoyance.

"Look, I already know what you're going to say, but I won't apologize for telling her!" Alice snapped in her high soprano voice.

"That wasn't for you to decide, Alice." Edward retorted through clenched teeth.

"She has the right to know! She is going to be one of us one day and it is only fair that she knows what she will be getting in to and the mechanics of the transformation!" She pressed on at a speed at volume that other humans wouldn't have been able to hear.

"No, she is not! I won't damn her to this existence, Alice. I won't destroy her soul!" He growled at the same frequency as her as he balled his fists at his side.

"Ok, let's calm down and remember where we are." Carlisle interrupted as he put a hand on Edward's shoulder in an attempt at calming him down. He shot Jasper a look that I didn't miss and I could feel the calm that my mate began radiating out through the room.

I watched as Alice and Edward's stiff postures relaxed, but the anger was still evident in their expressions.

"She's not even out of the hospital yet and we already had a fight about this, Alice. She is mad that I didn't let the venom spread so that she could be like me! This has done nothing but cause problems for us and will continue to be a constant battle with us until one of us gives in or does something drastic and I'm telling you right now, it won't be me who gives in!"

"She had a right to know!" Alice continued.

They continued to argue and it didn't look like either of them was going to give in. Carlisle had his head in his hands in exasperation as Jasper and I kept to ourselves and watched the fighting rage on. If things got out of hand, we would step in, but for now it looked like a battle of opinions and they at least had the smarts to argue so that the humans couldn't hear.

Finally, Carlisle intervened.

"Enough!" He snapped, effectively stopping Alice and Edward in their tracks. "Look, this is not the time and place for this conversation. Edward, I understand where you are coming from and agree that yes, she is your mate and it should be you who decides when and how Bella learns about the transformation, among other things, but you can't continue to keep her in the dark. You should have been the one to tell her about this stuff before now." He finished before turning his attention to Alice.

"Alice, I understand where you are going from as well. Bella has a right to know about all of this, but it is not up to you to be the one to tell her. She is Edward's mate and he is the one who gets to decide when and how Bella finds out and if she is going to be changed. I understand you saw it happen, but that doesn't mean that you get to put pressure on the situation to make it happen when you think it should. If it is meant to happen, then it will. Leave it at that. It's not your job to interfere." He finished.

The silence continued on for a few moments before Alice decided to speak up.

"I'm sorry, Edward. Carlisle was right." She said. "I know it isn't my responsibility to tell her any of this and I'm sorry for causing problems between the two of you."

Edward nodded. "It's alright. I understand that you care about her and just wanted to help. I know how much pressure your gift puts on you at times and I should have taken that in to consideration before blowing up on you. But you're right. Bella shouldn't have been kept in the dark about all of that and I should have already told her myself. As for her becoming a vampire, I'm sorry, but I just can't let that happen." He finished shaking his head as he turned around and left the waiting area, most likely heading towards Bella's room. Carlisle then announced that he was going to run back to his hotel room and shower up and get in to a change of clothes and waved good-bye.

About twenty minutes later, Renée emerged, leaving her bags in Bella's room next to the cot that the hospital gave her to sleep on the last five nights. She looked up at Jasper and I with a smile and told us that Bella was awake and wanted to see us.

I looked at Jasper and asked him at vampire speed, "Are you going to be okay if we go in?"

He pursed his lips before slowly nodded and helping me to my feet like a true southern gentleman. He kept his hand in mine as we made our way down the long hallway to Bella's room and knocked before entering.

Edward was sitting in a chair next to her bed as he held her hand in both of his. His attention snapped to Jasper worriedly as he noticed him enter the room with me. Bella smiled happily as she saw the two of us before reaching for me.

Having learned my lesson from the last time I left Jasper's arms without his allowance, I took hooked his arms lower around my waist before bending over and giving Bella a gentle hug as to not irritate her injuries. I pulled back and kissed her cheek and gave her a warm smile.

"Hi Jasper," Bella greeted him shyly and unsure of his reaction to her. I knew that she was worried that he would hate her after what happened at the airport, but I knew that though Jasper was upset, he didn't hold it against Bella as she thought that her Mom was in danger and that it was just James that we were going to meet. She didn't intentionally put us in that position, but he did warn me that I better not do anything like it ever again and he will be upset with her if she does it a second time.

I could feel him hold his breath before pulled his face out of my neck and hair and look toward the hospital bed.

"Good afternoon, Bella." Jasper nodded. "How are you feeling?"

"Sore, but I'll manage." She shrugged. "Ouch!"

Edward's attention snapped from Jasper back to Bella with concern etched on his face.

"Are you okay? What hurts?" He asked.

"It's nothing, I just need to keep reminding myself not to move so much." She grumbled before returning her attention to Jasper and myself.

"Jasper, Lilly, I just wanted to apologize for what happened at the airport. I know we already spoke about this, Lilly, but I still feel like I should apologize to you again and to Jasper for the first time. I really thought that he had my mom and that Lilly could use her gift to get us out." She said sincerely. "I understand if you hate me, but I just wanted to say that I'm sorry for the trouble I put the both of you through."

"I understand, Bella." Jasper replied. "I don't hate you and I understand the position that he put you in. But please, for my sake and Edward's, don't do it again?"

"I won't," she smiled. "Besides, I doubt that this situation will happen again anyway. I don't have that bad of luck!"

We all chuckled and he shook his head before tucking it back into my neck and breathing in my scent. It was then that I knew that everything was going to be okay.

**A/N:**** This was the last real chapter! The Epilogue is the only thing left before this story is completed and I move on to the sequel! I will post an author's note as soon as the first chapter is up so that everyone will know what it's called and when you can start reading it!**

**Also, if you have anyone has questions about the story or the sequel, feel free to post them in my reviews and I will answer them in my next Author's Note!**

**Check out my other stories!**

'Attempting to Covet'  
>'Dhampir'<br>'Far Fetched Realities'  
>'Mirror Image'<br>'Other Worldly Beauty'  
>'Perplexing Revelations'<br>'Pretexting'  
>'The Heart's Desire'<span>** NEW!  
><strong>'The Major'  
>'Twilight ReVAMPed'<span>

**If you enjoyed this story so far, check out some of my other stories on my FanFiction page! Also, I am still accepting Twilight stories that involve Jasper/any female leads or Bella/selected male leads if anyone is looking for a Beta Reader. I will make exceptions on the characters depending on the plot. I am also now accepting Phantom of the Opera FanFictions that include Erik! I will also be accepting Titanic FanFictions featuring Jack, and Law and Order SVU that feature Elliot. PM me for details!  
><strong>_- Bella'Xo  
><em>**Xo BellaItalia oX**


	35. Epilogue

**Disclaimer. ****All publicly recognizable characters, settings etc., are the property of their respective owners. The original characters, ideas and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended. I only do this for fun. –B**

**Epilogue  
><strong>**(Edward's POV)**

I helped Bella into my car, being very careful of the wisps of silk and chiffon, the flowers I'd just pinned into her elaborately styled curls, and her bulky walking cast. I ignored the angry set of her mouth.

When I had her settled, I got in the driver's seat and headed back out the long, narrow drive.

"At what point exactly are you going to tell me what's going on?" She asked grumpily. She really hated surprises and I knew it.

"I'm shocked that you haven't figured it out yet." I threw a mocking smile in her direction, and her breath caught in her throat.

"I did mention that you looked very nice, didn't I?" She verified.

"Yes." I grinned again. It was obvious that the fact that I was wearing a tuxedo made her very nervous.

But not quite as nervous as the dress that she was wearing. Or the shoe. Only one shoe, as her other foot was still securely encased in plaster. But the stiletto heel, held on only by satin ribbons, certainly wasn't going to help her as she tried to hobble around.

"I'm not coming over anymore if Alice is going to treat me like a Guinea Pig Barbie when I do," she griped.

She spent the better part of the day in Alice's staggeringly vast bathroom, a helpless victim as she played hairdresser and cosmetician.

Whenever she would fidget or complain, Alice would remind her that she didn't have any memories of being human, and asked her not to ruin her vicarious fun. Then she'd dress her in some of the most ridiculous dresses – deep blue, frilly and off the shoulders, with French tags – a dress more suitable for a runway than Forks. I must admit that in the end she did a wonderful job on her and even Bella couldn't believe that it was really her that she was looking at in the mirror. Of course, I only learned all of this from Alice and Lilly's thoughts, who had offered her opinion on each dress due to Alice's insistence.

My thoughts were interrupted by my cell phone ringing. I pulled my cell phone from a pocket inside my jacket, looking briefly at the caller ID before answering.

"Hello, Charlie," I said warily.

"Charlie?" Bella frowned.

Charlie had been… difficult since our return to Forks. He had compartmentalized Bella's bad experience into two defined reactions. Toward Carlisle he was almost worshipfully grateful. On the other hand, he was stubbornly convinced that I was at fault – because, if not for me, she wouldn't have left home in the first place. And I was far from disagreeing with him.

These days he had set rules that hadn't existed before: curfews… visiting hours.

"_Hey, Edward."_ Charlie greeted me_. "Listen, I'll get right to the point. Tyler Crowley came by saying that he is Bella's prom date and that he was here to pick up Bella to take her to the prom."_

"You're kidding!" I laughed.

"What is it?" Bella demanded, but I ignored her in favor of Charlie.

"_Yeah, he's here right now." _

"Why don't you let me talk to him?" I suggested with evident pleasure. I waited a few seconds and I could hear Charlie hand off the phone to Tyler.

"_Uh, hello?"_ Tyler asked with his voice full of confusion and suspicion.

"Hello, Tyler, this is Edward Cullen." I greeted him with the friendliest voice that I could muster under the circumstances and tried to keep the humor and amusement out of my voice. Though I could not hold back the soft edge of menace.

I could tell that Bella had figured out what Tyler was doing there as she began to look down at her dress again as she played with the hem.

"_Um, h-hey Edward. I-is Bella with you?"_ He stuttered out. I could hear Charlie chuckling in the background through the phone.

"I'm sorry if there's been some kind of miscommunication, but Bella is unavailable tonight." I told him.

"_Oh, damn. Well, maybe another night then."_ He said with an air of cockiness in his voice. I wasn't sure what amped his confidence, but it only managed to piss me off.

"To be perfectly honest, she'll be unavailable every night, as far as anyone besides myself is concerned. No offense. And I'm sorry about your evening." The threat in my tone was much more evident and I wasn't sorry at all, regardless of what I said and it was made clear in my tone of voice.

I didn't give him a chance to reply as I snapped the phone shut with a huge smirk on my face.

I looked at Bella in surprise when I noticed that her face and neck were flushed crimson with anger and her eyes were starting to fill with rage-induced tears.

"Was that last part a bit too much? I didn't mean to offend you." I apologized but she ignored that.

"You're taking me to the prom!" She yelled.

If I was honest, I was surprised that it took her this long to figure it out. If she had been paying any attention at all, I'm sure she would have noticed the date on the posters that decorated the school buildings. I never imagined that she would react this strongly about this.

I pressed my lips together and my eyes narrowed. "Don't be difficult, Bella."

Her eyes flashed to the window; we were halfway to the school already.

"Why are you doing this to me?" She demanded in horror.

I gestured to my tuxedo. "Honestly, Bella, what did you think we were doing?"

**(Bella's POV)**

I was mortified. First, because I'd missed the obvious. And also because the vague suspicions – expectations, really – that I'd been forming all day, as Alice tried to transform me into a beauty queen, were so far wide of the mark. My half-fearful hopes seemed very silly now.

I'd guessed there was some kind of occasion brewing. But prom! That was the furthest thing from my mind.

The angry tears rolled over my cheeks. I remembered with dismay that I was very uncharacteristically wearing mascara. I wiped quickly under my eyes to prevent any smudges. My hand was un-blackened when I pulled it away; maybe Alice had known I would need waterproof makeup. "This is completely ridiculous. Why are you crying?" he demanded in frustration.

"Because I'm mad!"

"Bella." He turned the full force of his scorching golden eyes on me.

"What?" I muttered, distracted.

"Humor me," he insisted.

His eyes were melting all my fury. It was impossible to fight with him when he cheated like that. I gave in with porr grace.

"Fine," I pouted, unable to glare as effectively as I would have liked. "I'll go quietly. But you'll see. I'm way overdue for more bad luck. I'll probably break my other leg. Look at this shoe! It's a death trap!" I held out my good leg as evidence.

"Hmmm." He stared at my leg longer than was necessary. "Remind me to thank Alice for that tonight."

"Alice is going to be there?" That comforted me slightly.

"And Lilly with Jasper, and Emmett… and Rosalie," he admitted.

The feeling of comfort disappeared. There had been no progress with Rosalie, though I was on quite good terms with her sometimes-husband. Emmett enjoyed having me around – he thought my bizarre human reactions were hilarious… or maybe it was just the fact that I fell down a lot that he found so funny. Rosalie acted as if I didn't exist.

I was just thankful that Lilly was going to be there, my best friend. No wonder she was so reluctant to help Alice get me ready today. She knew that I wasn't going to like any of this.

Though Jasper forgave me for the incident in Phoenix, he still hasn't warmed up to me any. He was polite enough and greeted me when he saw me and said good-bye when I left, but other than that, he didn't go out of his way to talk to me and never spoke to me unless I spoke to him first. He usually stayed away from me if Lilly wasn't around and when she was, he was completely immersed in her. It amazed me sometimes how strong their bond was and how they could look at each other and have a conversation with their eyes.

I shook my head to dispel the direction my thoughts had taken, and I thought of something else.

"Is Charlie in on this?" I asked, suddenly suspicious.

"Of course," He grinned, and then chuckled. "Apparently Tyler wasn't, though."

I gritted my teeth.

How Tyler could be so delusional, I couldn't imagine. At school, where Charlie couldn't interfere, Edward and I were inseparable – except for those rare sunny days.

We were at the school now; Rosalie's red convertible was conspicuous as it was parked in the parking lot next to Jasper's Viper. The clouds were thin today, a few streaks of sunlight escaping through far away in the west.

He got out and walked around the car to open my door. He held out his hand.

I sat stubbornly in my seat, arms folded, feeling a secret twinge of smugness. The lot was crowded with people in formal dress: witnesses. He couldn't remove me forcibly from the car as he might have if we'd been alone.

He sighed. "When someone wants to kill you, you're brave as a lion – and then when someone mentions dancing…" He shook his head.

I gulped. Dancing.

"Bella, I won't let anything hurt you – not even yourself and I'm sure Lilly and Alice would do the same. I won't let go of you once unless you want me to, I promise."

I thought about that and suddenly felt much better. He could see that in my face.

"There, now," he said gently, "it won't be so bad." He leaned down and wrapped one arm around my waist. I took his other hand and let him lift me from the car.

He kept his arm tightly around me, supporting me as I limped toward the school.

In Phoenix, they held proms in hotel ballrooms. This dance was in the gym, of course. It was probably the only room in town big enough for a dance. When we got inside, I giggled. There were actually balloon arches and twisted garlands of pastel crepe paper festooning the walls.

"This looks like a horror movie waiting to happen," I snickered.

"Well," he muttered as we slowly approached the ticket table – he was carrying most of my weight, but I still have to shuffle and wobble my feet forward – "there are more than enough vampires present."

I looked at the dance floor; a wide gap had formed in the center of the floor, where two couples whirled gracefully. The other dancers pressed to the sides of the room to give them space – no one wanted to stand in contrast with such radiance.

Emmett and Jasper were intimidating and flawless in classic tuxedos. Lilly was stunning in a robin's egg blue halter that matched Jasper's tie and vest and made her skin almost glow. The back of her dress was backless all the way down to just above her rear while the V cut neckline plunged to her waist. It was tightly fitted to her body and ended mid-thigh, but there was mesh laid tightly on top of it that fell all the way down to her ankles with rhinestones littered all over the place. Her hair was done half down half up with loose strands of curls falling down her back. Rhinestones matching the ones on her dress were scattered through her hair making her whole body sparkle. It was almost a sin how beautiful she was. She was beyond belief. She was the type of girl who makes every girl envious and jealous with their self-esteem in question while every guy wipes up their drool. I pitied every girl in the room, myself included. Not even Edward's vane, blond sister matches up to her and that is saying something.

Speaking of Rosalie, she was beautiful with her vivid scarlet dress. It was backless, tight to her calves where it flared into a wide ruffled train, with a neckline that stopped in the middle of her breasts. All of her blond hair was pulled back off of her neck with several strands falling down, framing her gorgeous round face. Alice was striking in a red satin dress with geometric cutouts that bared large triangles of her snowy white skin. It was covered in glitter and when the lights hit it, it looked like pixie dust. It was spaghetti strapped that squared off right above her breasts. Her hair was parted on the side and pinned up on the right side. She had her short spikes gelled with glitter sprayed all over the place matching her dress.

"Do you want me to bolt the doors so you can massacre the unsuspecting townsfolk?" I whispered conspiratorially.

"And where do you fit into that scheme?" He glared.

"Oh, I'm with the vampires, of course."

He smiled reluctantly. "Anything to get out of dancing."

"Anything."

He bought our tickets, and then turned me toward the dance floor. I cringed against his arm and dragged my feet.

"I've got all night," he warned.

Eventually he towed me out to where his family was twirling elegantly – if a style totally unsuitable to the present time and music. Jasper was effortlessly twirling and tossing Lilly around with huge smiles on the both of their faces, as Emmett and Rose danced almost like a fast version of a waltz. Alice appeared to be dancing with a senior that I've seen talking to Lilly before that Jasper didn't appear to like. I think his name is Matt Reaper from their Chemistry class. It was obvious that she was leading him, but he didn't have a problem following. I watched the three couples in horror.

"Edward." My throat was so dry I could only manage a whisper. "I honestly can't dance!" I could feel the panic bubbling up inside my chest.

"Don't worry, silly," he whispered back. "I can." He put may arms around his neck and lifted me to slide his feet under mine.

And then we were whirling, too.

"I feel like I'm five years old," I laughed after a few minutes of effortless waltzing.

"You don't look five," he murmured, pulling me closer for a second, so that my feet were briefly a foot from the ground.

Lilly caught my eye on a turn and smiled in encouragement – I smiled back. I was surprised to realize that I was actually enjoying myself…a little.

"Okay, this isn't half bad," I admitted.

But Edward was staring toward the doors, and his face was angry.

"What is it?" I wondered aloud. I followed his gaze, disoriented by the spinning but finally I could see what was bothering him.

Jacob Black, not in a tux, but in a long-sleeved white shirt and tie, his hair smoothed back into his usual ponytail, was crossing the floor toward us. Behind him was another guy that was standing near the entrance of the gym, leaning against the wall. I knew he came with Jacob because I saw him around the reservation once or twice. He looked a few years older than him with short, spikey black hair. He was huge and it was obvious that he was well built by the way his muscles rippled under his collared black shirt and pants. I noticed that he was looking at something behind me. I was almost positive that his name was Paul something. He must have been the one who had drove Jacob here.

I followed his gaze and noticed that he was watching Lilly as she was dancing with Jasper. He didn't look too happy, but he didn't look like he was about to interfere either. It was clear as day that he was interested in her. Then again, what guy wasn't interested in my amazing best friend?

After the first shock of recognition, I couldn't help but feel bad for Jacob. He was clearly uncomfortable – excruciatingly so. His face was apologetic as his eyes met mine.

Edward snarled very quietly.

"Behave!" I hissed.

Edward's voice was scathing. "He wants to chat with you."

Jacob reached us then, the embarrassment and apology even more evident on his face.

"Hey, Bella, I was hoping you would be here." Jacob sounded like he'd been hoping the exact opposite. But his smile was just as warm as ever.

"Hi, Jacob." I smiled back. "What's up?"

"Can I cut in?" he asked tentatively, glancing at Edward for the first time. I was shocked to notice that Jacob didn't have to look up. He must have grown half a foot since the first time I'd seen him.

Edward's face was composed, his expression blank. His only answer was to set me carefully on my feet, and take a step back.

"Thanks," Jacob said amiably.

Edward just nodded, looking at me intently before he turned to walk away.

Jacob put his hands on my waist, and I reached up to put my hands on his shoulders.

"Wow, Jake, how tall are you now?"

He was smug. "Six-two."

We weren't really dancing – my leg made that impossible. Instead we swayed awkwardly from side to side without moving our feet. It was just as well; the recent growth spurt had left him looking gangly and uncoordinated, he was probably no better a dancer than I was.

"So, how did you end up here tonight?" I asked without true curiosity. Considering Edward's reaction, I could guess.

"Can you believe my dad paid me twenty bucks to come to your prom?" he admitted, slightly ashamed.

"Yes, I can," I muttered. "Well, I hope you're enjoying yourself, at least. Seen anything you like?" I teased, nodding toward a group of girls lined up against the wall like pastel confections.

"Yeah," he sighed. "But she's taken."

He glanced down to meet my curious gaze for just a second – then we both looked away, embarrassed.

"It seems like you're not the only one in that position." I said nodding toward his friend who was still by the door.

He turned his head around and looked to see that he was still in the same position since the last time I saw him, hypnotized by Lilly in her beautiful prom attire. Except this time there were several girls around him, almost hanging on him, trying to get his attention. But he wasn't paying them any mind. He did not break his unwavering gaze from Lilly's smiling form.

Jacob followed his line of sight to Lilly and let out a long sigh.

"I've heard gossip from a couple of friends that Paul has it bad for her, but she already has a boyfriend. I'm assuming that's him, right?" He asked nodding towards Jasper who had clearly noticed Paul as he kept looking off in his direction once in a while. Lilly must have told him to leave him alone, because I couldn't picture Jasper letting another man slide for looking at Lilly the way that he was.

I nodded, confirming Jacob's assumption. "Yeah, that's Jasper."

"From what I was told, she has always been incredibly nice to everyone that she had met when he first met her and Paul was immediately smitten with her." He told me.

"Well, that's Lilly for ya." I shrugged with a smile.

"Yeah, I know." He nodded. "I knew that if I told him that she was going to be there that he would jump at the chance to drive me down here."

I nodded in return and a few moments later he spoke again.

"You look really pretty, by the way," he added shyly.

"Um, thanks. So why did Billy pay you to come here?" I asked quickly to get the attention off of me, though I already knew the answer.

Jacob didn't seem grateful for the subject change; he looked away, uncomfortable again. "He said it was a 'safe' place to talk to you. I swear the old man is losing his mind."

I joined in his laughter weakly.

"Anyway, he said that if I told you something, he would get me that master cylinder I need," he confessed with a sheepish grin.

"Tell me, then. I want you to get your car finished." I grinned back. At least Jacob didn't believe any of this. It made the situation a bit easier. Against the wall, Edward was watching my face, his own face expressionless. I saw a sophomore in a pink dress eyeing him with a timid speculation, but he didn't seem to be aware of her.

Jacob looked away again, ashamed. "Don't get mad, okay?"

"There's no way I'll be mad at you, Jacob," I assured him. "I won't even be mad at Billy. Just say what you have to."

"Well – this is so stupid, I'm sorry, Bella – he wants you to break up with your boyfriend. He asked me to tell you 'please.'" He shook his head in disgust.

"He's still superstitious, eh?"

"Yeah. He was… kind of over the top when you got hurt down in Phoenix. He didn't believe…" Jacob trailed off self-consciously.

My eyes narrowed. "I fell."

"I know that," Jacob said quickly.

"He thinks Edward had something to do with me getting hurt." It wasn't a question, and despite my promise, I was angry.

Jacob wouldn't meet my eyes. We weren't even bothering to sway to the music, though his hands were still on my waist, and mine around his neck.

"Look, Jacob, I know Billy probably won't believe this, but just so you know" – he looked at me now, responding to the new earnestness in my voice – "Edward really did save my life. If it weren't for Edward and his father, I'd be dead."

"I know," he claimed, but he sounded like my sincere words had affected him some. Maybe he'd be able to convince Billy of this much, at least.

"Hey, I'm sorry you had to come do this, Jacob," I apologized. "At any rate, you get your parts, right?"

"Yeah," he muttered, "I'll get a job and save the money myself." I glared at him until he met my gaze. "Just spit it out, Jacob."

"It's so bad."

"I don't care. Tell me," I insisted.

"Okay… but, geez, this sounds bad." He shook his head. "He said to tell you, no, to warn you, that – and this is his plural, not mine" – he lifted one hand from my waist and made little quotation marks in the air – "'We'll be watching.'" He watched warily for my reaction.

It sounded like something from a mafia movie. I laughed out loud.

"Sorry you had to do this, Jake," I snickered.

"I don't mind that much." He grinned in relief. His eyes were appraising as they raked quickly over my dress. "So, should I tell him you said to butt the hell out?" he asked hopefully.

"No," I sighed. "Tell him I said thanks. I know he means well."

The song ended, and I dropped my arms.

His hands hesitated at my waist, and he glanced at my bum leg. "Do you want to dance again? Or can I help you get somewhere?"

Edward answered for me. "That's alright, Jacob. I'll take it from here."

Jacob flinched, and stared wide-eyed at Edward, who stood just beside us.

"Hey, I didn't see you there," he mumbled. "I guess I'll see you around, Bella." He stepped back, waving halfheartedly.

I smiled. "Yeah, I'll see you later."

"Sorry," he said again before he turned for the door with Paul trailing after him.

Edward's arms wound around me as the next song started. It was a little up-tempo for slow dancing, but that didn't seem to concern him. I leaned my head against his chest, content.

"Feeling better?" I teased.

"Not really," he said tersely.

"Don't be mad at Billy," I sighed. "He just worries about me for Charlie's sake. It's nothing personal."

"I'm not mad at Billy," he corrected in a clipped voice. "But his son is irritating me."

I pulled back to look at him. His face was very serious.

"Why?"

"First of all, he made me break my promise."

I stared at him in confusion.

He half-smiled. "I promised I wouldn't let go of you tonight," he explained.

"Oh. Well, I forgive you."

"Thanks. But there's something else." He frowned.

I stared up at me and waited patiently for him to answer.

"He called you pretty," He finally continued, his frown deepening. "That's practically an insult, the way you look right now. You're much more than beautiful."

I laughed. "You might be a little biased."

"I don't think that's it. Besides, I have excellent eyesight."

We were twirling again, my feet on his as he held me close.

"So are you going to explain the reason for all of this?" I wondered.

He looked down at me, confused, and I glared meaningfully at the crepe paper.

He considered for a moment, and then changed direction, spinning me through the crowd to the back door of the gym. I caught a glimpse of Jessica and Mike dancing, staring at me curiously. Jessica waved, and I smiled back quickly. Angela was there, too, looking blissfully happy in the arms of little Ben Cheney; she didn't look up from his eyes, a head lower than hers. Lee and Samantha, Lauren, glaring at Lilly with Conner; I could name every face that spiraled past us. And then we were outdoors, in the cool, dim light of a fading sunset.

As soon as we were alone, he swung me up into his arms, and carried me across the dark grounds till he reached the bench beneath the shadow of the madrone trees. He sat there, keeping me cradled against his chest. The moon was already up, visible through the gauzy clouds, and his face glowed pale in the white light. His mouth was hard, his eyes troubled.

"The point?" I prompted softly.

He ignored me, staring up at the moon.

"Twilight, again," he murmured. "Another ending. No matter how perfect the day is, it always has to end."

"Some things don't have to end," I muttered through my teeth, instantly tense.

He sighed.

"I brought you to the prom," he said slowly, finally answering my question, "because I don't want you to miss anything. I don't want my presence to take anything away from you, if I can help it. I want you to be human. I want your life to continue as it would have if I'd died in nineteen-eighteen like I should have."

I shuddered at his words, and then shook my head angrily. "In what strange parallel dimension would I ever have gone to prom of my own free will? If you weren't a thousand times stronger than me, I would never have let you get away with this."

He smiled briefly, but it didn't touch his eyes. "It wasn't so bad, you said so yourself."

"That's because I was with you."

We were quiet for a minute; he stared at the moon as I stared at him. I wished there was some way to explain how very uninterested I was in a normal human life.

"Will you tell me something?" he asked, glancing down at me with a slight smile.

"Don't I always?"

"Just promise you'll tell me," he insisted, grinning.

I knew I was going to regret this almost instantly. "Fine."

"You seemed honestly surprised when you figured out that I was taking you here," he began.

"I was," I interjected.

"Exactly," he agreed. "But you must have had some other theory… I'm curious – what did you think I was dressing you up for?"

Yes, instant regret. I pursed my lips, hesitating. "I don't want to tell you."

"You promised," he objected.

"I know."

"What's the problem?"

I knew he thought it was mere embarrassment holding me back. "I think it will make you mad – or sad."

His brows pulled together over his eyes as he thought that through. "I still want to know. Please?"

I sighed. He waited.

"Well…I assumed it was some kind of… occasion. But I didn't think it would be some trite human thing… prom!" I scoffed.

"Human?" he asked flatly. He'd picked up on that key word.

I looked down at my dress, fidgeting with a stray piece of chiffon. He waited in silence.

"Okay," I confessed in a rush. "So I was hoping that you might have changed your mind… that you were going to change me, after all."

A dozen emotions played across his face. Some I recognized: anger… pain… and then he seemed to collect himself and his expression became amused.

"You thought that would be a black tie occasion, did you?" he teased, touching the lapel of his tuxedo jacket.

I scowled to hide my embarrassment. "I don't know how these things work. To me, at least, it seems more rational than prom does." He was still grinning. "It's not funny," I said.

"No, you're right, it's not," he agreed, his smile fading. "I'd rather treat it as a joke, though, than believe you're serious."

"But I am serious."

He sighed deeply. "I know. And you're really that willing?"

The pain was back in his eyes. I bit my lip and nodded.

"So ready for this to be the end," he murmured, almost to himself, "for this to be the twilight of your life, though your life has barely started. You're ready to give up everything."

"It's not the end, it's the beginning," I disagreed under my breath.

"I'm not worth it," he said sadly.

"Do you remember when you told me that I didn't see myself very clearly?" I asked, raising my eyebrows. "You obviously have the same blindness."

"I know what I am."

"I don't understand how it was so easy for Jasper to change Lilly, but you refuse to even consider it." I murmured.

He looked down at me confused. "What are you talking about? Who said that Jasper changed Lilly?"

I bit my lip. "Well, I always just assumed…" I paused and looked down. "So, if Jasper didn't change her, than how did she become a vampire? Who changed her? Carlisle?"

"Bella," Edward huffed, "there is no way that Jasper would let anyone change Lilly besides himself. Lilly was already a vampire when we first met her; when you first met her. It's up to her to tell you her story and when she does, you will understand."

I sighed and nodded.

But his mercurial mood shifted on me. He pursed his lips, and his eyes were probing. He examined my face for a long moment.

"You're ready now, then?" he asked.

"Um." I gulped. "Yes?"

He smiled, and inclined his head slowly until his cold lips brushed against the skin just under the corner of my jaw.

"Right now?" he whispered, his breath blowing cool on my neck. I shivered involuntarily.

"Yes," I whispered, so my voice wouldn't have the chance to break. If he thought I was bluffing, he was going to be disappointed. I'd already made this decision, and I was so sure. It didn't matter that my body was rigid as a plank, my hands balled into fists, my breathing erratic…

He chuckled darkly, and leaned away. His face did look disappointed.

"You can't really believe that I would give in so easily," he said with a sour edge to his mocking tone.

"A girl can dream."

His eyebrows rose. "Is that what you dream about? Being a monster?"

"Not exactly," I said, frowning at his word choice. Monster, indeed. "Mostly I dream about being with you forever."

His expression changed, softened and saddened by the subtle ache in my voice.

"Bella." His fingers lightly traced the shape of my lips. "I will stay with you – isn't that enough?"

I smiled under his fingertips. "Enough for now."

He frowned at my tenacity. No one was going to surrender tonight. He exhaled, and the sound was practically a growl.

I touched his face. "Look," I said. "I love you more than everything else in the world combined. Isn't that enough?"

"Yes, it is enough," he answered, smiling. "Enough for ever."

And he leaned down to press his cold lips once more to my throat.

**(Lilly's POV)**

"Did you hear all of that?" Jasper asked as we walked hand in hand across the courtyard of the school near the gazebo that was filled with lights where Bella and Edward were dancing.

"Yeah," I nodded, "I did."

Jasper had said that he wanted to show me something and pulled me out of the dance. We had made it to the courtyard when we overhead Edward asking Bella what she thought he was going to be doing with her tonight.

"What do you think about it?" He asked as we continued on a path towards the tree line behind the school.

"Well, I can't really relate to any of you guys, because I've always been what I am, even if I didn't know it yet and before my supernatural abilities kicked in. I haven't had to give up John and Anne or go through the newborn frenzy. I can't really give any opinion because I don't know what it's like." I shrugged.

"Why what do you think?" I asked looking up and over at Jasper.

He pursed his lips for a moment before he replied. "I think he should change her."

"You just think that because of me." I snorted and innocently bumped his shoulder laughing. "Don't forget, I was at that family meeting when we discussed the possibility of Bella being changed into one of us. You changed your tune about killing her when you found out that Alice saw her as a vampire."

"Yeah, I know." Jasper chuckled as he pulled me into his side, let go of my hand only to wrap his arm around my shoulders. "But even if that wasn't true, I would think that as long as she understands exactly what she is getting in to and the consequences of her decision that it should be her choice if she wants to be changed or not."

"I agree," I nodded. "but believing the way that Edward does, and knowing how much he loves and cares about Bella, I can understand his reluctance to do so as well."

"That's true and I agree with both sides as well." He nodded as he pulled me to a stop as we broke through the tree line.

I bent down to take my heals off and held them in my left hand as we took off through the forest me following Jasper's lead as the forest blurred around us.

We ran for about a half hour and we stopped about fifty feet from another tree line, somewhere I have never been before.

Jasper came up behind me and wrapped his arms around me from behind and placed a chaste kiss behind my ear.

"Close your eyes," he whispered.

I looked back at him in confusion. He began to chuckle and kissed my forehead, shaking his head in amusement.

"Trust me," he pressed and took my heals out of my hand so that I could cover my eyes. I sighed and silently obeyed Jasper's request.

"Good," he praised me as he placed his hands on my shoulders and carefully guided me forward.

I briefly debated opening my fingers and peering through them to see what I was getting ready to walk in to.

"No peaking!" Jasper chastised.

Damn, he must have felt my emotions shift. I giggled at myself and him and kept my eyes shut under my hands.

I felt it as we broke through the tree line and the soft blades of grass under my feet before I began to feel what felt like a blanket under my feet as he guided me in to what felt like the center of the blanket. He then took his hands off my shoulders and I could hear him moving around walking around me.

"Okay, open your eyes." He whispered.

I opened my eyes and felt my breath catch in my throat.

I was standing on a soft cashmere blanket with dozens of different sized spa candles and twinkling lights surrounding us. There was a wine bottle opened with two glasses sitting on a small stool filled with what smelled like some of the sweetest donated human blood that I had ever smelled.

The spot that we were set up at was at the top of a cliff that overlooked the city of Seattle and the ocean against it. It was the most breath taking view that I had ever seen in person.

But that was not the most amazing part of my view.

Down in front of me on one knee with the most beautiful ring I had ever seen was my Jasper. He was looking at me with so much love, devotion and affection that I could feel my eyes begin to glaze over. Though, underneath all of those emotions, I could almost sense his fear and nervousness at what he was about to do and what my reaction would be.

"Jasper?" I gasped.

"Lilly, from the first time I saw you and your eyes met mine, I knew that we were meant to be together for the rest of eternity. I never had to second guess myself about anything that came to you. You are always the one thing that I knew I am sure about.

"I love you so much that sometimes, I swear that I can feel my heart beating again. You've given me so much and many of those things, I never thought I would ever be lucky enough to have. You are the only one that I can really be myself around and not worry about judgment with or worry that you will love me any less." His voice was shaking and venom was becoming glossy in his eyes as he spoke

"I promise you that I will always be faithful, devoted, loyal, and there for you for as long as I shall live. I promise to love you more and more every day and show you that love in every form that there is as many times that I can.

"You're perfect for me in every way that someone can be matched. So, Lilly Elizabeth McLean…will you do me the extreme honor of saying yes to me tonight and becoming my wife?"

I continued to look in to his eyes as he finished. They were filled with such hope and love and every piece of my soul was screaming at me to thrust myself in to his arms and smash my lips to his. But I knew that I had to answer him first before I could do what my body and heart most craved.

I got down on my knees right against his body. Our faces were only inches apart and I reached up my hand and traced the scar that I had come to love that was right above his left eyebrow.

I leaned in slowly and just before my lips met his I whispered 'yes' and pressed my lips to his.

He wrapped his arms around my frame and pulled me tightly to his body. I could feel him smiling against my lips as we continued to kiss.

Finally after several moments, we pulled away and I looked into his smiling face. I knew that my face mirrored his own and he brought my left hand in-between us in his own and slid the ring on my finger.

"Oh, Jasper." I gasped. "It is so beautiful."

"It was my mother's." He told me. "Before I left for the war, she gave this to me and told me that it was her mother's and that I should give it to the woman that I want to marry."

"Thank you." I choked.

"No, thank you." He grinned and pecked my lips again. "I had it engraved."

"Really? With what?" I asked.

"_pour l'éternité"_** (For Eternity)** He told me.

I smiled so wide that my cheeks were beginning to hurt and I nodded.

"_pour l'éternité"_ I agreed and brought his lips back to mine.

**A/N:**** Wow, I can't believe it's finished! As soon as I finish the first chapter of the sequel, I will post an Author's Note telling you what the name of it is and that it is ready to be viewed. I really hope that everyone liked this story. I'll talk to everyone soon! **

**If anyone has any questions about this story, post them in my reviews and I will answer them in my next Author's note when I give you the Sequel information!**

**Ali ****7/16/12 . chapter 34 **

**I think that Lilly should tell Bella about her past soon.**

_Lilly will be telling Bella about her past, but not until the fourth book for reasons that you will find out when the time comes! _

**Check out my other stories!**

'Attempting to Covet'  
>'Dhampir'<br>'Far Fetched Realities'  
>'Mirror Image'<br>'Other Worldly Beauty'  
>'Perplexing Revelations'<br>'Pretexting'  
>'The Heart's Desire'<span>** NEW!  
><strong>'The Major'  
>'Twilight ReVAMPed'<span>

**If you enjoyed this story so far, check out some of my other stories on my FanFiction page! Also, I am still accepting Twilight stories that involve Jasper/any female leads or Bella/selected male leads if anyone is looking for a Beta Reader. I will make exceptions on the characters depending on the plot. I am also now accepting Phantom of the Opera FanFictions that include Erik! I will also be accepting Titanic FanFictions featuring Jack, and Law and Order SVU that feature Elliot. PM me for details!  
><strong>_- Bella'Xo  
><em>**Xo BellaItalia oX**


	36. Author's Note Sequel

**..Author's Note..**

**I just wanted to announce that I have started posting the Sequel  
>to this story! It is called <strong>**Dhampir: 'Broken Moonlight'.**

**Here an extended summary: **_Lilly and Jasper seal their forever with their vows, but an accident  
>at Bella's birthday party causes the family to slit up. Lilly doesn't agree with Edward<br>about leaving Bella behind, so she challenges his demands and defies his ruling.  
>Meanwhile, Jasper has an old enemy from his past stalking him. Who are they and what do they want?<br>Bella goes through a depression without the Cullen's around, but keeping in touch  
>with Lilly keeps her strong. Especially after learning about the secrets behind the Quileute tribe. <em>

**Read it and let me know what you think!  
><strong>_-Bella'Xo  
><em>**Xo BellaItalia oX**


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